Gov. Doug Burgum and Lt. Gov. Brent Sanford Monday applauded the start of carbon storage operations at the Red Trail Energy LLC ethanol facility near Richardton, made possible by North Dakota being the first state in the nation to obtain regulatory authority from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over Class VI underground storage wells in 2018.
"By capturing and storing the carbon from ethanol production, Red Trail Energy is helping to pave the way for the long-term viability of current energy sources in North Dakota with innovation and environmental stewardship," Burgum said. "This project and similar carbon capture, utilization and storage projects currently in the works will allow CO2 to be safely stored deep underground for generations to come and extracted if needed as current and future uses of carbon are developed. North Dakota continues to lead with innovation, not regulation, and advancements such as this will help us enhance national security and reduce reliance on foreign energy sources, protect the environment and bring down energy prices for consumers."
"We're grateful to Red Trail Energy for this trailblazing achievement and to the North Dakota Industrial Commission and its staff for their work on achieving primacy and approving the permits for this milestone project," Sanford said, adding North Dakota's congressional delegation, and specifically Sen. John Hoeven during his time as governor, also played a key role in the state being the first to obtain primacy over Class VI wells.
The Industrial Commission, chaired by Burgum, granted approval last October for Red Trail Energy to commercially capture 180,000 metric tons of CO2 per year from its corn-based ethanol facility and inject it into the Brook Creek Formation on property owned by Red Trail Energy. Burgum and Sanford also expressed their gratitude for the Energy and Environmental Research Center's integral work to determine North Dakota's carbon storage potential and feasibility.
"Red Trail Energy's carbon capture and storage project is now online, marking a major milestone for the implementation of CCUS in North Dakota," said U.S. Senator John Hoeven, who was governor at the time the project began. "This is a tremendous example of how our state continues to pave the way for this critical energy technology, starting with the regulatory framework that we put in place nearly 15 years ago. CCUS benefits both renewable and traditional energy, empowering our nation to continue utilizing all of its abundant energy resources while reducing emissions. That's the right path forward for our nation, helping us to both fight inflation and ensure Americans have access to affordable and reliable energy."
As governor, Hoeven helped create a regulatory framework for carbon storage by establishing the North Dakota CO2 Storage Workgroup in 2008, advancing a bill through the legislature to grant this authority to the North Dakota Industrial Commission, and enacting legislation that granted ownership of the pore space to the owner of the overlying surface estate.
Categories: North Dakota, Energy