Skip to main content

Oil Spill Detection Service

KSAT is your invaluable partner in oil spill monitoring. With 20+ years of experience we deliver fully analysed oil spill detection results globally every day. 

While a global energy transition is underway, oil remains the bedrock of today’s energy mix. KSAT therefore remains deeply committed to providing the industry’s most operationally effective oil spill detection service, as it has since 1995. We ensure that critical information gets where it needs to be, faster than anyone else can.

KSAT benefits from access to the largest available constellation of satellites, and downloads imagery on the world’s largest and best positioned Ground Station Network. 

Key Facts about KSAT's Oil Spill Detection Service: 

  • Oil spill detection monitoring by satellite enables a much larger area to be monitored, at a fraction of the cost, compared to surveillance by aircraft, vessel, buoy, or platform radar. The service also covers naturally occurring oil seeps as well as produced water.
  • KSAT draws imagery from the largest available constellation of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites. This ensures maximum coverage options for any spot on the globe. SAR imagery is primarily used because it images through clouds, darkness, smoke or other occlusions. 
  • We have industry-leading oil spill analysts on station 24/7/365.  The moment SAR imagery data is processed, it is analysed first by algorithmic processes, and is then quality-checked by a highly skilled human analyst. Spills detected in SAR images are then correlated with Automatic Identification System (AIS) data used by vessels and many oil and gas installations to help pinpoint the source of the spill. This video explains the process:

KSAT Quality Manager Ida Kinderås talks about how she together with her team of expert analysts have designed a bespoke analysis tool called the “Earth Capture”. This new tool enables fast and accurate detection of oil spills through combining different data sources in a tailor-made interface.
  • The fully analysed Oil Spill Detection report is then delivered to the customer, normally between 20 and 120 minutes from the moment the satellite acquired the image. This is the fastest delivery time in the industry and ensures that decision-makers receive the critical information they need, fast enough to take action.
  • The Oil Spill Detection Reports are delivered through 2 main channels: a PDF report and also through KSAT’s proprietary online visualization tool, called cView. 

Oil spill image 2.jpg

The service is ideal for

  • Regulators or environmental groups wanting to monitor, track and identify the source of oil spills, produced water, and naturally occurring seeps.

  • Operators of offshore oil and gas assets who want to monitor their own operations to detect possible spills of oil and produced water. This can be the best possible way to demonstrate compliance with laws and regulations and to meet environmental and Corporate Social Responsibility commitments. This service also helps operators prove that they have NOT been responsible for spills, or damages caused by natural oil seeps.

  • Those who need to receive Near Real-Time oil spill information to support incident response and consequence management when spills do, unfortunately, occur.

  • KSAT can also access an archive of thousands of natural seep detections around the globe, which can help guide new exploration activities while enhancing the understanding of natural seep activity in new, potential, production blocks.

Pipeline Monitoring

Learn more about our pipeline and infrastructure monitoring services

Greenhouse Gas

Learn more about our Greenhouse Gas monitoring services

Talk to us about Oil Spill Detection

  • Rob Ayasse
    Vice President EO Sales
  • Børre Pedersen
    Sales Director APAC – EO
  • Martin Skedsmo
    Key Account Manager
  • Andreas Hay Kaljord
    Sales Director - EO