British Drilling Association launches sustainability sub-committee at London conference

The British Drilling Association (BDA) launched its Sustainability Sub-Committee at its 2026 conference at the Institution of Civil Engineers in London on 21 October, with chair Alison Randall asking members to help shape its priorities.

The BDA said the sub-committee would meet quarterly to share experiences, explore realistic solutions, identify opportunities for improvement and support drilling businesses in developing their own sustainability initiatives.

It builds on the association's earlier Sustainability Working Group, which the BDA said was established as a formal sub-committee this year.

The launch presentation

Randall presented a session titled 'Beneath the Surface: Driving Sustainability in the Drilling Industry', in which, according to the BDA, she set out why sustainability is becoming more important to clients and how their expectations are influencing procurement and day-to-day decisions on projects.

The BDA said she stressed that sustainability extends beyond carbon reduction to climate change, energy efficiency, waste, resource management, biodiversity and other environmental impacts.

Practical opportunities discussed at the session included understanding and reducing fuel consumption, improving site logistics to avoid unnecessary journeys and idling, maintaining equipment efficiently, considering alternative fuels or power sources where appropriate, and reducing waste through better planning, storage and recycling.

Randall also recognised that smaller drilling businesses often face particular challenges as reporting expectations grow and client requirements vary, the BDA said. Sharing experience and identifying proportionate, achievable approaches would therefore be central to the sub-committee's work.

Who can join

The BDA said specialist expertise was not required and that it was encouraging members at every stage of their sustainability journey to take part, with ideas, examples of good practice, lessons learnt and practical challenges all considered valuable.

The BDA is a trade association formed in 1976 representing organisations in the UK land drilling and geotechnical sector. Its membership includes manufacturers, suppliers, laboratories, consultants, clients, trainers and surveyors.

Background

The association's own records trace the sub-committee's origins over several years. In October 2022 the BDA announced it had established a sustainability working group chaired by Nick Reichelt, Associate Director of Drilling at Structural Soils, with a scope that included emissions from drilling machines and alternative fuels for rigs such as electricity and hydrogen.

In January 2024 the BDA said its Net Zero working group had been established in late April 2023 and was producing a document tailored to the needs of BDA members, to be updated regularly. By April 2024, the association said, the group had 12 members, had met six times over the preceding year, and its guidance document had six subject headings, four of them detailed.

The BDA's achievements timeline gives a slightly different sequence, listing the formation of a 'Sustainability Working Towards Net Zero' group under 2022, a 2023 webinar, Carbon Challenges for Members, as the start of its sustainability programme, and the launch of the BDA Net Zero Working Group under 2024.

The conference

The 2026 conference, titled Drilling Horizons 2026 and Beyond, was held at ICE London. The BDA's January 2026 call for speakers had said the event would take place in September, while its later save-the-date notice gave 21 October and said the programme would include presentations on training and education, sustainability, and technical and standards matters. Registration was due to open in July 2026.

Randall has invited members to help shape the sub-committee's priorities. It will meet quarterly, and members can express interest in joining by emailing sustainability@britishdrillingassociation.co.uk.