SDN hands NUPRC digital tracker to check methane emissions from oil firms
- Stakeholder Democracy Network has given the upstream oil regulator a free digital platform to track methane emissions.
- The tracker compares satellite readings with figures oil and gas operators report, so inspectors can spot gaps.
- NUPRC says operators must move from estimated to measured emissions reporting by the first quarter of 2027.
A non-profit group, Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN), has handed Nigeria's upstream oil regulator a free digital tool for tracking methane emissions from oil and gas facilities, in a push to make it harder for operators' pollution to go unnoticed.
The platform, called the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Emission Tracker (NOGIET), was presented to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) in Abuja. SDN's board chairman, Inemo Samiama, said it was built with support from the Global Methane Hub and given to the commission at no cost.
Methane is a gas released during oil and gas operations, including through flaring. Samiama said it traps far more heat than carbon dioxide over the short term, making it a major driver of near-term climate change.
How the tracker works
NOGIET brings together three sets of information: methane readings picked up by satellites, maps of oil blocks and pipelines, and emissions figures supplied by the companies running the facilities.
With that, regulators can set what the satellites see beside what operators report, flag differences, trace a plume back to a particular facility and decide which sites to inspect first.
Samiama said the tool is at its best when satellite and on-the-ground data are read together. He also said regulators can only enforce what they can see.
Nigeria has pledged to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030, and Samiama said the NUPRC sits at the centre of that promise.
A separate handover is planned for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), so both regulators can run the system. SDN asked the commission to fold the tracker into its day-to-day monitoring and inspections, keep the data current and secure the platform.
Why it matters
For communities near oil and gas sites, better monitoring could mean leaks and flaring are found and reported faster, and that companies' own figures face an independent check.
Capt. John Tonlagha, the NUPRC's executive commissioner for health, safety, environment and community, said the platform would sharpen emissions surveillance, help pinpoint pollution hotspots and make environmental data more credible.
He said it comes as the commission steps up enforcement of its 2022 guidelines on fugitive methane and greenhouse gas emissions upstream. Under those rules, operators must stop relying on estimated figures and report actual measurements by the first quarter of 2027.
Abdulafiz Balogun, the commission's director for health, safety, environment and community, said the tracker would let the NUPRC verify what operators submit on its own, rather than taking their word for it.
SDN hopes the NUPRC, NMDPRA, the National Council on Climate Change, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Global Methane Hub will show the platform at the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Türkiye, in November. Samiama said it could later be widened to cover other greenhouse gases.
What happens next: The NUPRC says it will work on plugging NOGIET into its monitoring and data systems, while the NMDPRA is due to receive its own copy. Operators have until early 2027 to switch to measurement-based reporting.
