Tradewater announces that it is working with oneshot.earth to develop an industry leading methodology to plug uncontrolled orphaned oil and gas wells that are leaking methane.
CHICAGO, June 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Tradewater is excited to announce that it is working with oneshot.earth's Open Carbon Protocol (OCP) to develop a new methodology for project developers to plug orphaned oil and gas (OOG) wells. Projects developed under the methodology will prevent the release of methane into the atmosphere and generate high-quality, essential carbon offset credits. The new methodology will leverage key learnings from industry experts, academia, and project developers to ensure that carbon offset credits generated from plugging OOG wells remain among the best on the market.
Tradewater was among the first project developers to bring orphaned oil and gas well carbon offset credits to market with Tradewater OOG 1 and Tradewater OOG 2. Those projects, developed under ACR's "Methodology for the Quantification, Monitoring, Reporting and Verification of Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions and Removals from the Plugging of Orphaned Oil and Gas (OOG) Wells," represented an invaluable first step in enabling carbon markets to bring critical climate financing to this urgent project type.
The new OCP methodology will build upon the great work already done in this market by adding some key new elements. These elements include:
- A clear definition of the environmental benefit of this project type as a well's total cumulative future emissions.
- The establishment of robust and practical methods for reliably measuring the methane at risk of leaking from each well.
- Adoption of an empirically based decline rate that reflects the typical reduction in emissions from a well over the applicable carbon crediting period, leading to a more conservative emissions calculation.
- Additional steps to improve confidence in the permanence of all plugging activities.
Tradewater is joined in this effort by the Payne Institute for Public Policy at the Colorado School of Mines, which has conducted research on well production throughout the United States to help Tradewater define an appropriate and empirically based decline rate to introduce into the new methodology.
The OCP is a platform committed to transparent, expert-driven carbon credit methodology development. Each new proposed methodology is reviewed by independent scientists, industry experts, climate policy experts, environmental NGOs, project developers, and academic reviewers in an iterative engagement and revision process until consensus is achieved. This inclusive, multi-stakeholder model not only strengthens credibility and scientific rigor but also builds trust among buyers, regulators, and the broader climate community. At the end of the process, all comments and revisions are made public, further advancing OCP's commitment to transparency.
"Tradewater was drawn to oneshot.earth and the OCP because of their commitment to transparency and consensus in methodology development," said Gabe Plotkin, a Founding Partner at Tradewater. "Their process, and the reviewer feedback we continue to receive, has strengthened our methodology and will ultimately lead to better, more impactful carbon offset projects."
"We were excited when Tradewater approached us with a clear goal to create a more conservative and higher integrity methodology for plugging orphaned oil and gas wells. It's a climate solution with so much immediate impact", said Thomas Annicq, co-founder and CEO of oneshot.earth, "Our methodologies raise the bar as they are only published when consensus is reached."
Tradewater's new methodology aims to ensure that the critical work for plugging actively leaking orphaned oil and gas wells to prevent methane emissions operates at the highest level of integrity while happening at scale. Methane is a short-lived climate pollutant that is 84 times more potent than CO2. It also accelerates warming in the short-term. Addressing methane and other non-CO2 gases are critical in our ability to prevent runaway climate change. We must work to mitigate as much of its release as soon as possible.
The methodology is currently in its third round of review with a goal of completion and publication by October 2025. Tradewater is eagerly anticipating its release and participation in this important protocol.
About Tradewater
Tradewater is a mission-based B Corp that works with individuals, organizations, and governments globally to find, measure, and safely mitigate the world's most potent super polluting greenhouse gases. These non-CO2 gases represent a critical path to avoiding climate change. It takes an integrated approach that results in verifiable, permanent climate impacts and sustainable economic benefits through the highest quality carbon offset credits. Visit tradewater.us to learn more.
About oneshot.earth
oneshot.earth is an organization with a single-minded focus on bending the emissions curve faster. They believe that with proper diligence, carbon assets can represent meaningful climate impact. Their Open Carbon Protocol is a flexible and collaborative registry designed from the ground up to ICVCM guidance. It allows project developers, experts, and other stakeholders in the voluntary carbon market to create new methodologies and projects that evolve with the science and the market. Providing the right information to buyers means they can make informed risk assessments, financing planetary-scale carbon reductions and removals. Visit oneshot.earth to learn more.
About Payne Institute at Colorado School of Mines
Payne Institute at Colorado School of Mines has a mission to provide world-class scientific insights, helping to inform and shape public policy on earth resources, energy, and environment. The Institute was established with an endowment from Jim and Arlene Payne and seeks to link the strong scientific and engineering research and expertise at Mines with issues related to public policy and national security. Payne initiatives include Accelerated Methane Reduction, Critical Minerals, Low Carbon Energy Technologies, Native American Mining & Energy Sovereignty (NAMES), Supply Chain Transparency and the Earth Observation Group (EOG).
Media Contact
Kirsten Love, Tradewater, 1 312.273.5122 1035, [email protected], https://tradewater.us/
SOURCE Tradewater
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