GAS DETECTION


REGULATION AS A DRIVER OF CHANGE Gas leaks risk the environment, revenue, costs for customers and the potential of fires and explosions. Historically, leak management has been reactive, with technicians dispatched only when customers reported odours or irregularities. However, this approach is no longer sufficient in today’s commercial and regulatory climate. Policymakers are responding with stricter rules to monitor gas wastage, most recently the European Union’s Leak Detection and Repair (LDAR) programmes bans routine venting and flaring, now requiring source-level measurement and reporting.


The UK, while not obliged to follow EU legislation post-Brexit, faces growing pressure to align. For UK businesses, methane management is no longer a matter of goodwill - it is becoming a commercial and environmental imperative. Failure to adapt risks fines, the loss of contracts, reputational damage and reduced investor confidence.


PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS ACROSS THE CHAIN The distribution network offers the greatest potential for improvement and minimising leaks. Responsible for three-quarters of total emissions, moving away from reactive leak management and into a proactive approach is essential. It is great to see that businesses are beginning to adopt mobile detection systems, which use vehicle or drone-mounted sensors to identify leaks quickly. These surveys can then be followed by targeted repairs, prioritising the highest-impact leaks without requiring costly full pipe replacements.


With the Health and Safety Executive set to mandate regular mobile surveys from 2026, operators need to act now to be well positioned to stay ahead of compliance requirements. Although transmission and storage facilities account for a smaller share of emissions, around four percent, they should not be forgotten. Regular digital inspections of pipelines, compressor stations and liquified natural gas (LNG) terminals reduce downtime, extend asset life and enhance market credibility. Similarly, at the production stage where venting, flaring and outdated equipment account for around six percent of emissions, businesses are already upgrading systems and integrating independent verification to secure export opportunities and investor trust.


TECHNOLOGY AND DIGITALISATION Advances in technology are central to the UK’s


SUSTAINABILITY IN GAS MANAGEMENT: DETECTION AND DIRECTION


For decades, carbon dioxide has dominated public concern and policy making the headlines as the biggest UK greenhouse gas threat. Methane, however, is now emerging as an equally


urgent concern. Though it remains in the atmosphere for less time


than CO2, methane traps more than 80 times more heat over a 20-year period. Reducing methane emissions has to be one of the biggest priorities to slow climate change. In 2023, the UK oil and gas sector alone emitted around 145 kilotons of methane, however the bulk of this wasn’t sourced from offshore oil platforms. Instead, gas-related sources accounted for 87 percent of the total and within that, the single largest source was fugitive leaks from the gas distribution network. The result? Gas leaks were responsible for 76 per cent of all methane emissions in the sector across the country. Chris Day, managing director at Tectrac explores the impact of gas leaks on businesses, the environment and the potential to cause further damage.


transition to achieve greater gas detection compliance. Leak detection, once reliant on slow and labour-intensive manual probes, is being transformed by open-path laser systems, mountable on any vehicle and capable of scanning wide areas in real time. These scans can be supported by high-flow analysers that quantify emissions and provide precise data, but hardware is only part of the story.


The real value lies in digitalisation - platforms that map leaks, rank them by severity and integrate findings into maintenance schedules. Instead of raw data, businesses gain actionable insights that regulators, investors and operators can trust.


EFFICIENCY AND COMPLIANCE Compliance is following protocols and measures to ensure safety and sustainability - the risks of failing to act are considerable. Non-compliance with EU and UK regulations can result in fines or restricted market access. Public scrutiny of accidental leaks can damage reputation and erode investor confidence. From a compliance perspective, businesses that ignore the issue will face ongoing risks from regulatory penalties and


24 WINTER/SPRING 2026 | INDUSTRIAL COMPLIANCE


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