TotalEnergies to advance satellite emissions monitoring
French TotalEnergies said July 7 it would work with Canada’s GHGSat to develop improved satellite imaging technology to enhance the potential to monitor methane leaks at offshore facilities.
The new technology, which TotalEnergies calls ‘glint mode’, adjusts for interference effects on data acquisition by observing sun glint off the surface of the ocean. This improved satellite imaging can then be combined with local measurements gathered using TotalEnergies' drone-mounted spectrometer, which has already proven to be the most accurate available.
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“As part of a continuous improvement programme, TotalEnergies has decided to initiate a new stage in its collaboration with GHGSat to develop an innovative satellite mapping technology suited to offshore infrastructure,” said Marie-Noelle Semeria, TotalEnergies’ chief technology officer. “This technology will build on the methane emissions measurement system for which TotalEnergies holds the accuracy record and strengthen our position as a pioneer in developing methane emissions monitoring technologies.”
TotalEnergies and GHGSat have been working together since 2018 to refine methane measurement capabilities, and in October 2020 set a world record at TotalEnergies’ testing complex at Lacq, in southwestern France, by successfully quantifying the smallest controlled leak detected to date. As part of the development programme, TotalEnergies and GHGSat will conduct six observations in glint mode of TotalEnergies’ offshore sites.
Montreal-based GHGSat has three methane detection satellites in orbit, but also offers airborne detection services and analytical capabilities.