2021 was a banner year for Satelytics. We saw growth in many of the industry segments we serve, but one segment in particular — gas and electric utilities — witnessed significant adoption of geospatial analytics offered by Satelytics. One not-insignificant factor in this growth was Satelytics’ ability to detect and quantify natural gas leaks in urban environments. We are now providing leak surveys for utilities in the U.S., Italy, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, and Brazil.

As the ESG push intensifies, methane has been the talk of the boardroom. Forward thinkers in the utility industry are looking for options to move beyond calculated emissions factors in favor of accurate measurements for their distribution networks.

Satelytics detects methane leaks down to concentrations of 80 parts per million and flow rates as low as 1 kilogram/hour, narrowing source identification to within 4 meters. This capability was developed over 18 months and successfully validated in urban areas and oil fields by multiple early customers who provided controlled releases of methane upon which we fine-tuned our models. Controlled releases have occurred against backgrounds including water, concrete, buildings, tree canopy, and vegetation cover to simulate conditions encountered in the field.

Don’t Fixate Only on Methane

While methane has been a focal point for many utility customers, Satelytics 40+ other measurements are value-added tools available at little extra cost. Satelytics’ goal is to drive as much monetary and operational value as possible from a single set of data. Why solve just one problem when you can solve many simultaneously? The top five value-added measurements employed by our utility customers in 2021 included:

• Encroachments in the ROW
• Vegetation management
• Land use identification
• State of large construction projects
• Geohazards and land movements

These outputs utilize very high-resolution satellite imagery with resolutions down to the square foot to detect and quantify even the smallest changes in large asset areas. Geospatial analytics provides rapid alerts to your team, directing them only to locations and threats requiring their expertise.

Methane is front and center right now in the board room, but there are many opportunities to employ geospatial analytics in your operations. Satelytics’ disruptive technology can benefit a company’s operations and environmental footprint and influence ESG strategy.