43 C.F.R. § 3179.71

Current through November 30, 2024

Section 3179.71 - [Effective 12/23/2024] Measurement of flared oil-well gas volume

(a) The operator may commingle flared gas from more than one lease, unit PA, or CA to a common high-pressure flare without BLM approval, subject to the allocation requirement in paragraph (h). The site facility diagram required under § 3173.11 must indicate that the high-pressure flare is a common, commingled flare and list the leases, unit PAs, or CAs contributing gas to the common flare.

(b) The operator must measure flared gas for high-pressure flares for volumes greater than or equal to 1,050 Mcf per month over the averaging period. For high-pressure flares measuring less than 1,050 Mcf per month over the averaging period, operators may estimate the volume flared, as described in paragraph (g) of this section.

(c) High-pressure flares requiring measurement must use either orifice plates and orifice meter tubes, or ultrasonic meters. High-pressure flare measurement systems must meet the following requirements:

(1) Orifice metering systems must comply with the low-volume measurement requirements in § 3175.80 , low-volume electronic gas measurement requirements in § 3175.100 , and the low-volume gas sampling and analysis requirements in § 3175.110 with the gas sampling location requirements provided in paragraph (d) or (e) of this section.

(2) Ultrasonic metering systems must comply with the following requirements:

(i) Each ultrasonic meter make and model must be tested for flare use. Flare gas meter testing must be conducted and reported pursuant to API 22.3 (incorporated by reference, see § 3179.30 ) and results must be made available to the AO upon request.

(ii) Ultrasonic meters must be installed and operated for flare use according to the manufacturer's specifications and those specifications must be provided to the AO upon request.

(iii) Ultrasonic metering systems must comply with the low-volume electronic gas measurement requirements in § 3175.100 , and the low-volume gas sampling analysis requirements in § 3175.110 , except for the gas sampling requirements in paragraph (d) or (e) of this section.

(3) Operators must evaluate the production facility to determine which type of flare measurement is safe for the facility.

(d) The gas sample must be taken from one of the following locations when the high-pressure flare is measuring a single lease, unit PA, or CA:

(1) At the flare meter;

(2) At the gas FMP, if there is a gas FMP at the well site and the gas composition is the same as that of the flare-meter gas; or

(3) At another location approved by the AO with a Sundry Notice submission.

(e) The gas sample must be taken from one of the following locations for a common high-pressure flare that measures more than one lease, unit PA, or CA;

(1) At the flare meter; or

(2) At another location approved by the AO with a Sundry Notice submission.

(f) Appropriate meters must be installed at all high-pressure flares pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section, and gas sampling must be taken from the appropriate location pursuant to paragraph (d) or (e) of this section according to the following phase-in timeline:

Table 1 to Paragraph (f)-Deadline for Compliance With High-Pressure Flare Measurement, and Gas Sampling Location

Flare flow category	Deadline for measurement compliance for high-pressure flares and gas sampling location
[GREATER THAN EQUAL TO]30,000 Mcf per month	December 10, 2024.
<30,000 Mcf per month and [GREATER THAN EQUAL TO]6,000 Mcf per month	June 10, 2025.
<6,000 Mcf per month and [GREATER THAN EQUAL TO]1,050 Mcf per month	December 10, 2025.
<1,050 Mcf per month	Not applicable.

(g) For high-pressure flares with volumes less than 1,050 Mcf per month, the flared volume may be estimated, or measured. Estimated flared gas volumes must be based on production reported on the ONRR OGORs over the previous 6 months and calculated as follows:

Equation 1 to Paragraph (g)

View Image

Where:

GOR_r = The gas-to-oil ratio for the previous 6 months of production as reported on the OGOR

m = The previous 6 months of flaring

V_g = The total volume of gas produced from oil wells in the previous 6 months as reported on the OGOR

V_o = The total volume of oil produced from oil wells in the previous 6 months as reported on the OGOR

Equation 2 to Paragraph (g)

V_f = (V_op * GOR_r)- V_LU - V_s

Where:

V_f = The estimated gas flared from oil wells to be reported on the OGOR

V_op = The total oil produced from oil wells while flaring

GOR_r = The gas-to-oil ratio for the previous 6 months of production as calculated from Equation 1 to Paragraph (g) using volumes reported on the OGOR

V_LU = The total gas used on lease, unit PA, or CA pursuant to subpart 3178

V_s = The total gas volume produced and sent through a gas FMP from oil wells while flaring

(h) If a flare is combusting gas that is combined across multiple leases, unit PAs, or CAs, the operator may measure the gas at a single point at the flare and allocate flared volumes based on the oil production while flaring from each lease, unit PA, or CA as follows:

Equation 3 to Paragraph (h)

View Image

Where:

n = The total number of leases, unit PAs, or CAs sending gas to a common flare

VF_i = The volume flared from the ith lease, unit PA, or CA sent to a common flare

VF_t = The total volume flared from a common flare

V_opi = The total volume of oil produced from oil wells on the ith lease, unit PA, or CA while flaring

(i) Measurement points for flared volumes are not FMPs for the purposes of subpart 3175.

43 C.F.R. §3179.71

89 FR 25426 , 6/10/2024; 89 FR 92605 , 12/23/2024