The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has deployed a digital platform to strengthen methane emissions monitoring and enforcement in the oil and gas industry, as operators face a first-quarter 2027 deadline to switch from estimated to actual emissions measurements.
The platform, known as the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Emission Tracker (NOGIET), is designed to help regulators detect methane emission hotspots, verify industry reports and identify operators that may be falling short of environmental requirements.
The Commission said the initiative would support Nigeria’s target of reducing methane emissions by 60 per cent by 2035, while advancing efforts to eliminate routine gas flaring and achieve net-zero emissions by 2060.
NOGIET was formally handed over to the Commission Chief Executive (CCE), Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, at the NUPRC headquarters in Abuja.
The Executive Commissioner, Health, Safety, Environment and Community, Captain John Tonlagha, who represented Eyesan at the handover, said the platform was part of efforts to strengthen implementation of the Commission’s 2022 Guidelines for the Management of Fugitive Methane and Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the Upstream Oil and Gas Sector.
Under the guidelines, operators are required to transition from estimation-based to measurement-based emissions reporting by the first quarter of 2027, a move expected to improve the accuracy of emissions data available to regulators.
Eyesan noted that NOGIET aligned with the Commission’s digital transformation agenda and Nigeria’s broader commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
She said: “NOGIET integrates satellite-based methane plume detection, regulatory mapping of oil blocks and pipelines, and facility-level emissions measurements to help regulators identify emission hotspots, detect discrepancies in reported data, prioritise inspections and strengthen compliance monitoring.”
She added that integrating the platform into the Commission’s regulatory monitoring and data management systems would improve the credibility, consistency and reliability of emissions data.
The technology will enable regulators to compare satellite observations with measurements taken at oil and gas facilities, providing an additional means of identifying possible gaps between reported emissions and actual observations.
Eyesan commended the Global Methane Hub for its financial and technical support, as well as SDN for its leadership and coordination in delivering the platform.
Board Chairman of the Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN), Mr Inemo Samiama, said the platform would strengthen evidence-based enforcement by helping regulators identify discrepancies in emissions reporting.
He said, “SDN hands over NOGIET in full, front end and back end, at no cost to the Commission.”
Samiama disclosed that the platform, currently hosted at nogiet.ng, would be transferred to a subdomain owned by the Commission.
Explaining the need for a coordinated approach across the petroleum industry, he said, “Because methane does not stop at the boundary between upstream and downstream, NOGIET is designed as one platform for the whole oil and gas sector.”
The platform was developed through a partnership involving SDN, with financial and technical support from the Global Methane Hub.
It is designed for use by both the NUPRC and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), allowing the two regulators to coordinate methane management across the oil and gas value chain.
The deployment comes as Nigeria pursues stronger emissions monitoring and enforcement in the petroleum sector, with the transition to measurement-based reporting expected to provide regulators with more reliable information for assessing operators’ compliance with environmental standards.
Source: Business Archives – New Telegraph
