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1. Inspections shall include routine inspections for operators and mine operators and non-routine inspections for operators, undertakings, mine operators and importers, as set out in this Article.

2. Inspections shall include, where relevant, site checks or field audits, examination of documentation and records that demonstrate compliance with the requirements of this Regulation, detection and measurement of methane emissions and any follow-up action undertaken by or on behalf of the competent authorities to check and promote compliance with the requirements of this Regulation. Where an inspection has identified a serious breach of this Regulation, the competent authorities shall issue, as part of the report referred to in paragraph 5, a notice of remedial actions to be undertaken by the operator, undertaking, mine operator or importer, setting out clear deadlines for those actions. Alternatively, the competent authorities may decide to instruct the operator, undertaking, mine operator or importer to submit to the relevant competent authority for approval a set of remedial actions to address the serious breaches which they have identified within 1 month from the date of conclusion of the inspection. Those actions shall be included in the report referred to in paragraph 5.

3. The first routine inspection shall be completed by 5 May 2026. After the first routine inspection, the competent authorities shall draw up programmes for routine inspections based on a risk assessment. The competent authority may decide on the scope and frequency of routine inspections, based on an appraisal of the risks associated with each site, such as environmental risk, including the cumulative impact of all methane emissions as a pollutant, human safety and health risks, as well as any identified breaches of this Regulation. The period between inspections shall not exceed 3 years. Where an inspection has identified a serious breach of this Regulation, the subsequent inspection shall take place within 10 months.

4. Without prejudice to paragraph 3 of this Article, the competent authorities shall carry out non-routine inspections to:

(a) investigate substantiated complaints referred to in Article 7 and occurrences of non-compliance as soon as possible after the date on which the competent authorities have become aware of such complaints or non-compliance and no later than 10 months after that date;

(b) ensure, where deemed relevant by the competent authorities, that leak repairs or replacements of components were carried out in accordance with Article 14 and that mitigation measures were implemented in accordance with Articles 18, 22 and 26;

(c) ensure compliance where a derogation has been granted under Article 14(5);

(d) verify, where deemed relevant by the competent authorities, compliance by undertakings and importers with this Regulation.

5. Following each inspection, the competent authorities shall prepare a report stating the legal basis for the inspection, the procedural steps followed, the relevant findings and recommendations for further actions by the operator, undertaking, mine operator or importer, including the deadlines for their implementation. Where appropriate, the competent authorities may prepare one report covering multiple inspections of assets, sites or components of the same operator, undertaking, mine operator or importer provided that such inspections are carried out before the next routine inspection. The report shall be notified to the operator, undertaking, mine operator or importer concerned and made publicly available within 2 months of the date of the inspection. Where the inspection was triggered by a complaint made in accordance with Article 7, the competent authorities shall notify the complainant once the report is publicly available. The report shall be made publicly available by the competent authorities in accordance with Directive 2003/4/EC. Where information is withheld on one or more of the grounds referred to in Article 4 of that Directive, the competent authorities shall indicate in the report the type of information that is withheld and the reasons therefor.

6. Where the report referred to in paragraph 5 concludes that an operator, undertaking, mine operator or importer does not comply with the requirements of this Regulation, it shall take all the necessary actions to bring its operations into compliance with this Regulation. The actions shall be taken without delay within the period set out by the competent authorities.

7. Member States may enter into formal agreements with relevant institutions, bodies, agencies or services of the Union or with other Member States or other appropriate intergovernmental organisations or public bodies, where available, for the provision of specialised expertise to support their competent authorities in carrying out the tasks attributed to them by this Article. For the purposes of this paragraph, an intergovernmental organisation or public body shall not be deemed appropriate where its objectivity may be compromised by a conflict of interest.