Announcements

Unconventional Gas and Oil Technologies Funding Opportunity
The DOE Office of Fossil Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory announces the release of the Unconventional Gas and Oil Technologies Funding Opportunity for new research and development projects, with a proposal submission deadline of June 28, 2012, 11:59PM (EST). The funding opportunity addresses the following areas: (1) Reservoir Characterization and Development Optimization for Liquid-Rich Shale Reservoirs; (2) Improved Horizontal Drilling and Hydraulic Fracturing Effectiveness for Unconventional (Liquid-Rich or Gas) Shale Plays; and (3) “Next-Generation” CO2-EOR. The requested research is a critical component of the DOE portfolio to advance the sustainable development of domestic gas and oil resources and supports ongoing programmatic efforts to (1) improve our understanding of the occurrence, producability, and environmental impacts of unconventional shale resources and (2) expand the use of a greenhouse gas to increase the recovery of domestic oil resources.

• To view the content / description of the Funding Opportunity Announcement please visit the FedConnect website and look for the Documentation section in the upper right hand corner.
• To view a Synopsis of the Funding Opportunity Announcement or to access the Forms and Instructions necessary for applying please visit the Grants.gov website.

Natural Gas Compression Technology Improves Transport and Efficiencies, Lowers Operating Costs An award-winning compressor design that decreases the energy required to compress and transport natural gas, lowers operating costs, improves efficiencies and reduces the environmental footprint of well site operations has been developed by a Massachusetts-based company with support from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

U.S. and Japan Complete Successful Field Trial of Methane Hydrate Production Technologies U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the completion of a successful, unprecedented test of technology in the North Slope of Alaska that was able to safely extract a steady flow of natural gas from methane hydrates – a vast, entirely untapped resource that holds enormous potential for U.S. economic and energy security.

Novel Surfactant Formulation May Bring New Life to Mature Oilfields A new generation of high-performance surfactants has proven successful in mobilizing residual oil in two mature fields in Oklahoma through a project supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). Read the detailed project summary.

Innovative DOE Technology Demonstrates Potential for Significant Increases in Safe and Responsible Production from Depleted U.S. Oil Fields The U.S. Department of Energy announced today that an innovative technology has successfully improved oil recovery at a 106-year old Illinois field by more than 300 percent. This method of extraction could help pull as many as 130 million additional barrels of oil from the depleted field, which is past peak production using traditional drilling. Read the detailed project summary.

Spring 2012 Issue of E&P Focus Now Available This issue reviews ongoing R&D aimed at improving CO₂ Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR). Included are discussions of: real-time CO₂ flood monitoring; improvements in mobility, conformance and sweep efficiency; near-miscible applications in the Arbuckle reservoirs in central Kansas; and the increasing potential of CO₂ EOR in residual oil zones.

Obama Administration Announces New Partnership on Unconventional Natural Gas and Oil Research Three federal agencies announce a formal partnership to coordinate and align all research associated with development of our nation’s abundant unconventional natural gas and oil resources. The partnership exemplifies the cross-government coordination required under President Obama’s Executive Order, which creates a new Interagency Working Group to Support Safe and Responsible Development of Unconventional Domestic Natural Gas Resources.

New Methane Hydrates Funding Opportunity Available
The DOE Office of Fossil Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory announces the release of a Methane Hydrates Program Funding Opportunity for new research and development projects, with a proposal submission deadline of June 1, 2012, 11:59PM (EST). The funding oportunity address the following general areas: 1) field programs that will enable collection of in situ data in gas-hydrate-bearing systems; 2) field sampling, modeling and/or remote sensing efforts designed to constrain methane hydrate system dynamics in gas-hydrate-bearing areas, particularly those at high latitudes or at the landward margin of gas hydrate stability in global deepwater settings; and 3) development of innovative tools, and/or the collection of fundamental data, to assist in the analyses of gas hydrate reservoir response and environmental impacts related to potential gas hydrate production.

• To view the content / description of the Funding Opportunity Announcement please visit the FedConnect website and look for the Documentation section in the upper right hand corner.
• To view a Synopsis of the Funding Opportunity Announcement or to access the Forms and Instructions necessary for applying please visit the Grants.gov website.

DOE Releases Comprehensive Review of CO₂ Enhanced Oil Recovery Mobility Control A thorough review of 40 years of RD&D related to the past successes and failures of lab- and field-scale efforts to reduce CO₂ mobility using CO₂ thickeners, foams, and gels is now available. Results clearly indicate that mobility and conformance control for CO₂ EOR can be technically and economically attainable. Read the report [PDF]

Fossil Energy R&D Returns Significant National Benefit in More Than Three Decades of Achievement Research and development activities at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy have helped increase domestic energy supplies and security, lowered costs, improved efficiencies, and enhanced environmental protection over the past 30 years, according to newly released informational materials.

E&P Focus Newsletter - A quarterly publication highlighting the latest developments in R&D being carried out by NETL

Fire In The Ice - Methane Hydrate R&D Program Newsletter

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