Hoeven announces five million dollar award from Department of Energy to EERC

(GRAND FORKS) – Senator John Hoeven today announced that he secured a $5 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for the University of North Dakota (UND) Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) to help develop CO₂ storage facilities in the Williston Basin. Hoeven worked to advance this funding, which supports North Dakota’s role as a world leader in the development and implementation of carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies and helps ensure the state can continue utilizing all of its abundant coal, oil and gas reserves. Specifically, through his role as a member of the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Committee, the senator:

• Secured increased funding for the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (RCSP) program, under which today’s award is being made.
  • The award supports the continued work of the EERC-led Plains CO₂ Reduction (PCOR) Partnership and builds upon $5 million that Hoeven secured for the partnership in 2021.
• Included a measure in annual funding legislation directing DOE to issue a competitive, multi-year RCSP solicitation to support partnerships like PCOR in the development of CCUS projects in regions like the Bakken.
• Made the case to DOE for the application, stressing EERC’s expertise and long-term leadership in this area and the legal and regulatory framework that Hoeven worked to establish in North Dakota in support of CCUS projects.
  • This includes Hoeven’s work to secure the state’s regulatory primacy over Class VI wells for geologic storage of CO₂. North Dakota was the first of only two states to have this authority.

“Whether in support of our coal-fired power plants, facilities like the Great Plains Synfuels Plant or our vast oil and gas industry, EERC and North Dakota are leading the way in developing CCUS technologies. This $5 million award provides continued support for the partnerships we’ve built to advance these efforts. It will enable EERC to provide its technical expertise as companies develop basin-wide carbon storage facilities, utilizing our unique geology in the Bakken and the legal framework and regulatory certainty we’ve worked to provide at the state and federal level,” said Hoeven.