IADC CONNECTION • WIRELINES
NOIA ESG report highlights emissions reduction case studies by member companies
The US National Ocean Industries
Association (NOIA) released a report in
January highlighting the work done by its
ESG Network and other members to share
and develop ESG best practices across the
offshore energy industry.
The report features case studies in emis-
sions reduction from 16 member compa-
nies, including BP, Halliburton, Noble Corp,
NOV, Oil States International, Shell, SLB,
Talos Energy, TechnipFMC and others. The
Noble case study, for example, discusses
how the company is using data to drive
emissions reductions. With advanced
monitoring equipment on its deepwater
rigs, fuel consumption can now be accu-
rately tracked and modeled to derive car-
bon emissions data. One notable result of
the measurement has been a significant
optimization of thruster operations.
NOIA’s report also discusses the work of
the its Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)
Workgroup, including a CCS policy paper
published in 2022. The group is also work-
ing with the Offshore Operators Committee
to support a forward-looking offshore car-
bon sequestration regulatory regime.
Further, the report outlines NOIA’s suc-
API urges EPA to adopt modifications to methane rule
API submitted a letter and 160+ pages
of comments to the US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) on 13 February
urging the agency to modify its supple-
mental proposed rules to reduce meth-
ane emissions in oil and gas operations.
While API supports cost-effective and
direct regulation of methane, it empha-
sized that these efforts should not com-
promise innovation or production of
American energy.
In its comments, API outlined its con-
cerns with several aspects of the pro-
posed rule, including the applicability
date of the final rule, the implementation
of the Super-Emitter Response Program,
the lack of flexibility for the use of alter-
native detection technologies and asso-
ciated gas provisions.
API also provided recommendations
that aimed to foster industry innova-
tion and bring about a “final rule that is
cost-effective, feasible to implement and
achieves continued meaningful reduc-
tions in methane emissions.”
API noted that voluntary, industry-led
initiatives such as the Environmental
Partnership “have built on the progress
industry has made to reduce emissions
and continuously improve environmen-
tal performance.” Since its founding
in 2017, the Partnership has grown to
include more than 100 companies repre-
senting over 70% of total US onshore oil
and natural gas production.
The letter also pointed out that average
methane emissions intensity declined
by nearly 66% from 2011-2021 across all
seven US major producing regions.
Scan me to read
API’s comments
to the US EPA.
bit.ly/3KJSpDB UH signs MoU with India to establish energy data center
The Directorate General Hydrocarbon
(DGH), the technical arm of the Indian
Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas,
has signed a memorandum of under-
standing (MoU) with the University of
Houston to establish a data center. It will
house a geoscience data repository with
display capability and software to inter-
pret E&P data and knowledge of India’s
sedimentary basins and fields.
The five-year agreement aims to pro-
vide reliable, high-quality data – includ-
44 ing seismic, well, reservoir and produc-
tion data – for research and develop-
ment, as well as to investors and compa-
nies based in the Greater Houston area
and the US Gulf Coast to encourage com-
mercial opportunities involving Indian
offshore offerings.
“This MoU is essentially an agreement
to spur collaboration and combine the
strengths of the involved parties for great-
er good,” said Ramanan Krishnamoorti,
VP of Energy and Innovation at UH.
cessful lobbying efforts for key offshore oil
and gas, wind and carbon storage provi-
sions in the US Inflation Reduction Act.
NOIA launched its ESG Network in
January 2020 as a platform for learning,
collaboration and continued improvement
in ESG.
Scan me to read
NOIA’s 2023 ESG
Network report.
bit.ly/3ELp3RL US Labor Department
updates OSHA penalties,
enforcement guidelines
In January, the US Department of Labor
announced changes to Occupational Safety
and Health Administration (OSHA) civil
penalty amounts based on cost-of-living
adjustments for 2023. OSHA’s maximum
penalties for serious and other-than-seri-
ous violations will increase from $14,502
per violation to $15,625 per violation. The
maximum penalty for willful or repeated
violations will increase from $145,027 per
violation to $156,259 per violation.
The Labor Department also issued new
enforcement guidance, which the agen-
cy says are designed to make its penal-
ties more effective in stopping employers
from repeatedly exposing workers to life-
threatening hazards or failing to comply
with certain workplace safety and health
requirements. OSHA Regional Administrators and
Area Office Directors now have the author-
ity to cite certain types of violations as
“instance-by-instance citations” for cases
where the agency identifies “high-gravi-
ty” serious violations of OSHA standards
specific to certain conditions where the
language of the rule supports a citation for
each instance of non-compliance. The pre-
vious policy had only applied to egregious
willful citations.
Further, OSHA reminded its Regional
Administrators and Area Directors of their
authority not to group violations together,
and instead cite them separately, to more
effectively encourage employers to comply
with the intent of the OSHA Act.
M A R C H/A P R I L 2023 • D R I L L I N G C O N T R AC T O R
UPCOMING IADC EVENTS • IADC CONNECTION
IADC HSE AND
S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y
ASIA PACIFIC
IADC Drilling Onshore
C C O O N N F F E E R R E E N N C C E E
CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION
& & E E X X H H I I B B I I T T I I O O N N
23-24 MAY 2023
GRAND HYATT KUAL A LUMPUR
KUAL A LUMPUR, MAL AYSIA
18 MAY 2023
H YAT T R E G E N C Y
HOUSTON WEST
HOUSTON, TEXAS
IADC International
Tax SEMINAR
8-9 JUNE 2023
SEMINAR G R A N D H YAT T S A N
A N TO N I O R I V E R WA L K
S A N
2023 IADC
WORLD DRILLING
CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION
A N T O N I O ,
T E X A S
IADC WELL CONTROL
CONFERENCE OF
THE AMERICAS
& Exhibition
20-21 JUNE 2023
PULLMAN LONDON
S T. PA N C R A S H O T E L
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
22-23 AUGUST 2023
THE N E W
RITZ CARLTON
O R L E A N S ,
L O U I S I A N A
To register for these and other conferences please visit us online at www.iadc.org/conferences/upcoming.
D R I L L I N G C O N T R AC T O R • M A R C H/A P R I L 2023
45