Enefit American Oil (EAO) and Utah State University Research Foundation’s Energy Dynamics Laboratory (EDL) signed a cooperation agreement to coordinate their efforts on issues related to air quality in the Uintah Basin where EAO is planning to develop an oil shale industry.
EDL, along with partners from UDEQ, NOAA, USU, BLM, EPA, and SITLA, is conducting a study during the winter of 2011-2012 to measure and collect information about ozone and related species in the Uintah Basin, Utah. Part of the data used will come from EAO`s meteorological and air quality monitoring station in the Basin. The data is a valuable source of information for EAO in planning the development of their future oil shale industry as well as a valuable input into EDL’s air quality study.
“Environmental issues such as air quality not only affect us as industry, but also the local community. We are excited to be able to contribute to the leading experts carrying out this study. Any industry has an impact on the local and regional environment as well as the community. Our aim is to identify those impacts and find ways to reduce the negative effects already in the planning process,” said Rikki Hrenko, CEO of Enefit American Oil.
"The Uintah Basin Winter 2012 Ozone Study is being conducted to better understand the chemistry and other factors involved in ozone formation during the winter months. The final objective of these efforts is to determine mitigation strategies that can be used to reduce ozone levels in the Uintah Basin. The data obtained from this study, including the data being provided by EAO, will be used to help achieve these objectives," said Dr. Scott Hill, Director of EDL's Eastern Utah Operations.
EAO, a 100% subsidiary of Enefit, was established in 2011 to develop an integrated oil shale industry with a capacity of 50,000 barrels of shale oil per day at full production based on a portion of the company’s property in Utah. The property is estimated to contain 2.6 billion barrels of shale oil in place. The industry is expected to create around 2000 jobs and even more indirect employment in associated industries and services.
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It is estimated that the project development phase will take six years and will be followed by a construction period lasting three years. The first oil is planned to be produced in 2020. The industry will be based on the Enefit technology which is regarded as the cleanest and most energy efficient shale oil production technology available today.EDL is a nonprofit research corporation owned by Utah State University (USU) as a part of the USU Research Foundation. Situated on USU's Innovation Campus in North Logan, Utah, and in USU’s Bingham Research Center in Vernal, Utah, EDL has access to state-of-the-art facilities and equipment. EDL in-house expertise is complemented by its sister organization, the Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL), which has a 50 year legacy in engineering, systems integration, program management and technology innovation.
Enefit is an international energy company operating in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Jordan and the United States. Enefit is engaged in oil shale mining, oil shale based electricity and heat generation, shale oil production, electricity distribution, and electricity and product sales to retail customers.
Additional information:
Rikki Hrenko
CEO Enefit American Oil Co
www.enefit.com
Scott C. Hill, Ph.D.
Director, Eastern Utah Operations
Energy Dynamics Laboratory, USURF
