Oilfield service company Pioneer Energy has secured four awards totaling $27 million from the Department of Energy aimed at reducing methane emissions from oil production in the Eagle Ford Shale, the Cotton Valley and Colorado, according to a Jan. 8 press release. 

Pioneer will allocate most of the funds toward advancing its Emission Control Treater (ECT), a near zero emissions well pad production technology, the company said.

ECT is expected to increase crude yield by 5% to 10% as it uses a closed system to completely process the crude, resulting in less heavy NGLs left in the gas, no flash gas left in the crude and zero routine flaring, Pioneer said.

“We are thrilled to receive the support of the Department of Energy to help us scale and commercialize our zero emissions technology. Deploying our Emission Control Treater (ECT) will result in a substantial increase in oil revenues,” said Pioneer Energy CEO Eyal Aronoff.

The first award of $10 million will be used to scale the ECT to a commercial scale of 2,500 bbl/d. This award will also be used to deploy units with Bayswater Exploration & Production and Prairie Operating for six-month field trials in Colorado.

Work has already begun on this project with expected field deployment in fourth-quarter 2025.

The company plans to use $6 million toward adapting the 2,500 bbl/d ECT for use in processing sour crude oil. The system is projected to sweeten the crude down to low sulfur concentration of parts per million, Pioneer said.

The third award of $5 million is planned for mini-ECT systems that are inexpensive, drop-in replacements for surface infrastructure at marginal wells, Pioneer said. The technology will be demonstrated for 12 months on several sites operated by Diversified Energy in the East Texas Cotton Valley.

The remaining $6 million in funding will help advance a novel flare gas-to-methanol system in the Eagle Ford Shale. The system is in partnership with carbon management company Emvolon Inc.

“The new grants will help us demonstrate the wide applicability of the ECT including processing sour crude, and for low producing wells, while simultaneously eliminating or greatly reducing unwanted flaring,” Aronoff said.

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