The Emerging Certified Natural Gas Market

Abstract

The natural gas industry is increasingly utilizing certified natural gas as a means to address Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) commitments, with a particular emphasis on the reduction of methane emissions. Certified natural gas has emerged as a multi‐faceted commodity that has stirred up considerable debate as it begins to reach beyond bilateral transactions between producers and end users, and into the tariff filings and business practices of transportation providers and other actors along the natural gas supply chain. As this article surveys the landscape of certified natural gas and provides an overview of the well‐known certification providers, it will also explore a few of the issues and concerns raised by commenters within several Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) dockets concerning the Tennessee Natural Gas PCG Pooling Service Option—the first tariff proposal of its kind by an interstate pipeline to establish paper pools for the sale and purchase of certified natural gas. Finally, this author will take a brief glance at the North American Energy Standards Board (NAESB) efforts to facilitate certified natural gas transactions through the ongoing development of a standardized NAESB Certified Gas Addendum to the NAESB Base Contracts for Sale and Purchase of Natural Gas.