US DOE, EPA Set to Award $850 Million to Methane Reduction Projects

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have selected 43 methane reduction projects for potential funding totaling about $850 million.

“Three projects will help small operators across the country significantly reduce methane emissions from low-producing oil and natural gas operations, using commercially available technology solutions”, the DOE said in a statement.

“Thirty-one projects will accelerate the deployment of early-commercial technology solutions to reduce methane emissions from new and existing equipment”, added the statement on the DOE’s website.

“Four projects will improve communities’ access to empirical emissions data and participation in monitoring.  

“Five projects will enhance the detection and measurement of methane emissions from oil and gas operations at regional scale”.

The selected beneficiaries comprise 20 private companies, 11 universities and one tribal consortium.

“The selected projects support the Biden-Harris Administration’s comprehensive, whole-of-government strategy to reduce harmful methane emissions across economic sectors”, the DOE said. “These efforts are accelerating reductions in methane emissions, supporting clean air and public health, creating good jobs, and advancing President Biden’s ambitious climate goals”.

According to the statement, $350 million for 14 states announced December 15, 2023, had also been finalized, meant to help the states support industry efforts to cut methane emissions from wells on non-federal lands and support the environmental restoration of well sites. 

The biggest recipient was Texas at $134.15 million, followed by Pennsylvania at $44.46 million and West Virginia at $37.79 million. The other beneficiaries were California, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Utah and Virginia.

The announcements are part of a total of $1.36 billion in financial and technical aid under the Inflation Reduction Act’s Methane Emissions Reduction Program.

“Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to approximately one-third of the global warming we are experiencing today”, the DOE said. “Over 100 years, one ton of emitted methane traps 28 times as much heat in the Earth’s atmosphere as one ton of emitted carbon dioxide.

“The oil and natural gas sector is the largest industrial source of methane emissions in the United States. A rapid reduction in methane emissions is one of the most important and cost-effective actions the United States can take in the short term to slow the rate of rapidly rising global temperatures”.

The statement added that minimizing methane emissions “will help position the United States as the most efficient producer of oil and natural gas in the world and ensure that the industry remains competitive in overseas markets that require a minimum level of emissions performance”.

“Together, DOE and EPA’s methane actions will advance the adoption of cost-effective technologies, reduce wasteful practices, and yield significant economic, health, and environmental benefits, while driving continued innovation in methane detection, monitoring, and mitigation techniques”, the DOE added.

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