Methane Mitigation Technologies Program

The Methane Mitigation Technologies Program’s mission is to reduce and eliminate non-trivial methane emissions sources to ensure a safe, reliable, and resilient natural gas supply chain. These non-trivial methane emissions include methane production, processing, transportation, and end-use operations.

The Methane Mitigation Technologies Program is focused on developing accurate, cost-effective, and efficient technology solutions and best practices to identify, measure, monitor, and eliminate methane emissions from these sources. The overarching missions of the Methane Mitigation Technologies Program are focused on achieving the administration’s “net-zero” emissions goals and include:

Methane Mitigation

Development of technologies to reduce or eliminate chronic emissions from natural gas infrastructure to support net-zero goals that includes advanced materials, advanced sensors, inspection and repair technologies, and improved mechanical components.

Methane Quantification

Development and field validation of advanced sensors and sensing platforms to enable remote, real-time emissions detection, quantification, and repair along the natural gas supply chain while also improving emissions characterization for national inventories and to improve top-down and bottom-up analysis. Development of technologies to reduce or eliminate chronic emissions from natural gas infrastructure to support net-zero goals that includes advanced materials, advanced sensors, inspection and repair technologies, and improved mechanical components.

Undocumented Orphaned Wells

Identification and characterization of undocumented orphaned wells and their associated environmental impacts to assist local, state, and federal agencies in plugging and abandoning activities.

Natural Gas Conversion

Continued development of technologies capable of drastically reducing the flaring of associated gas, specifically at the wellhead, while simultaneously creating value from the avoided emissions in the form of sustainable fuels and chemicals.

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

Identify and prioritize technology development and deployment opportunities to quantify and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions from liquefied natural gas production and transport infrastructure.

NETL implements this effort as part of DOE’s Resource Sustainability Program.