Pioneer Energy announced today that it has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a $6 million award to adapt Emvolon’s proprietary gas to methanol technology to eliminate flaring and emissions in the oilfield. This technology will be demonstrated at an oil and gas facility in the Eagle Ford of Texas.

Emvolon, an MIT spin-off, utilizes otherwise wasted methane and converts it into ready-to-use, easy-to-transport, liquid green chemicals and fuels. By repurposing car engines as cost-effective modular chemical plants, Emvolon has designed a best-in-class technology platform that converts not only flared gas but also biogas and landfill gas into liquid green methanol, which can then be transported in standard truck containers – offering a way to monetize otherwise stranded resources at a low cost and without expensive pipeline infrastructure while avoiding emissions.

This award will provide funds to scale and package Emvolon’s innovative, proprietary gas-to-liquids technology, addressing the challenges of oilfield deployment. The technology will be demonstrated for 12 months at an oil and gas facility in the Eagle Ford in South Texas.

“We are thrilled to receive the support of the Department of Energy to help us commercialize Emvolon’s technology, which shows tremendous promise for flaring and emissions reduction in the oilfield,” said Pioneer Energy’s CEO Eyal Aronoff. “We look forward to working closely with the DOE as well as Emvolon, as we leverage our expertise to adapt their technology for this challenging oilfield application, furthering the DOE’s goal of using new technology to improve domestic oil production and oilfield efficiency.”

“This federal grant follows on the heels of venture funding and new partnerships we announced late last year. The capital and commitment to our technology will help us speed the roll-out and scaling of our onsite gas-to-liquid system,” said Emmanuel Kasseris, CEO of Emvolon. “Working in partnership with Pioneer Energy we look forward to commercializing our technology for deployment in Texas.”

DOE Announcement:

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY ANNOUNCE $850 MILLION TO REDUCE METHANE POLLUTION FROM THE OIL AND GAS SECTOR

Source: BUSINESS WIRE