Linc Energy CEO Peter Bond said the plant will allow the Australian company to prove to U.S. stakeholders, investors and potential commercial partners, the viability of the UCG technology in the United States.
“What makes this so exciting is the opportunity to introduce the enormous potential of UCG to an American audience, and prove that it can be done in an environmentally sound and sustainable manner in the backyard of the largest energy market on the planet,” Bond said. “This is not just important for our U.S. customer base, but the success of Gasifier 6 in Wyoming will have a multiplier effect across whole regions and countries that will see this as just one more reason to adopt UCG into their energy platform.”
The permit application is based upon more than 16 months of continuous work and collection of baseline data. As part of the permitting requirements and site feasibility, Linc Energy has conducted drilling and coring operations, hydrogeological studies with baseline groundwater sampling and wildlife and vegetation surveys on the UCG demonstration site located near Wright, Wyo. The application includes detailed hydrogeology models, UCG cavity growth models and subsidence control models prepared using Linc Energy’s proprietary UCG technology.
Linc Energy is a significant holder of state-owned coal leases in the PRB, controlling approximately 184,210 acres of coal within the Wyoming PRB. In addition to Linc Energy’s original GasTech lease acquisitions in 2009 and 2010, the company has acquired an additional 17,280 acres of coal leases from the State of Wyoming in 2011. This additional acreage is near Linc Energy’s latest oil field acquisition, advancing the company’s business strategy of converting the gasified coal to saleable gas-to-liquids products, exportable power and using the CO2 byproduct for enhanced oil recovery.
Once the permit is issued construction for the surface facilities will commence. The development time for Gasifier 6 will be minimized, as much of the pre-approval preparatory work is already completed. “Linc Energy anticipates igniting the gasifier to complete the 90 day gasification demonstration at the Wyoming UCG demonstration site in the second quarter of 2012,” Bond said. “After demonstrating to the WDEQ that Linc Energy has met the conditions outlined in the permit, the company intends to develop commercial UCG operations in the PRB.”
