REUTERS: Pioneer Natural Resources Chief Executive Scott Sheffield on Tuesday called on producers in the top U.S. shale field to limit natural gas flaring and monitor for methane leaks.
"We do not connect any new horizontal wells to production unless the gas line is already in place," Sheffield said."I think that's something that should be adopted by all producers in the Permian Basin." Gas flaring and venting in the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico reached a new high of 750 million cubic feet per day in the third quarter, according to estimates released on Tuesday by Rystad Energy.During the previous nine months, flaring and venting averaged 600 million to 650 million cubic feet per day, Rystad said.