LDAR for Upstream Oil and Gas

An LDAR program—Leak Detection and Repair—is a structured process for identifying, documenting, repairing, and verifying leaks from equipment that may release methane, VOCs, or other regulated emissions. For upstream oil and gas operations, an effective program includes asset coverage, detection methods, repair workflows, recordkeeping, and reporting. Continuous monitoring can add visibility between scheduled inspections and help prioritize validated events for response.

LDAR requirements vary by facility type, jurisdiction, applicable rule, and monitoring method. Programs commonly require an equipment inventory, defined survey frequency or continuous-monitoring approach, leak thresholds where applicable, records of detection and repair, follow-up verification, and reporting. Operators subject to EPA methane requirements should evaluate applicable provisions, including 40 CFR Part 60 Subpart OOOOb, with qualified regulatory and legal advisers.

Continuous LDAR monitoring uses fixed sensors and analytics to watch for emissions-related events around the clock. Well Checked’s Zensory.ai™ platform combines long-wave infrared optical gas imaging, video, and acoustic data. Zentinal Core™ evaluates multiple sensor streams and filters likely non-fugitive activity, then alerts designated operator personnel when it validates a potential fugitive gas event for investigation and response.

Yes. Long-wave infrared optical gas imaging can support methane and VOC detection during day and night conditions when appropriately deployed. In Well Checked’s platform, infrared imaging is paired with visual and acoustic intelligence to provide additional operational context. Site conditions, equipment layout, weather, gas characteristics, and installation design all affect monitoring performance and should be evaluated during planning.

Well Checked provides operator-facing alert delivery through the Well Checked Dashboard, email, text, and SCADA integration. Response-workflow templates, dispatch runbooks, and rapid-response protocols are designed to help operator teams acknowledge, dispatch, and mitigate validated events within 24 hours. Actual response timing remains under the operator’s control and depends on access, personnel availability, safety conditions, and repair scope.

Zentinal Core™ evaluates information from multiple sensor streams rather than treating every observed plume or operational change as a fugitive leak. The platform uses an approximately two-day AI Site Learning cycle to establish site-specific operating patterns, then helps distinguish normal process emissions from anomalies. Alert-tuning services can further refine sensitivity, known-event suppression, and escalation rules as site baselines evolve.

Validated and quantified emissions data can support regulatory reporting, emissions inventories, repair prioritization, and internal performance tracking. Well Checked structures data to support EPA methane-rule alternative-monitoring compliance submissions and measurement-based reporting frameworks such as OGMP 2.0 Level 4/5. It is also structured for SASB Oil & Gas E&P and TCFD ESG disclosure workflows, subject to each operator’s reporting obligations.

Well Checked serves US continental onshore upstream oil and gas producing regions. Confirmed deployment experience includes the Appalachian Basin. Deployment planning considers site communications, equipment layout, power, safety requirements, existing controls, and the operational workflow needed for alerts, dispatch, and documentation.