This Coal is Clean: Massive Source of Liquid Fuels for N. America

US coal reserves are a massive store of hydrocarbon, and a potential source of abundant amounts of liquid hydrocarbons -- should they ever be needed. New ways of clean utilisation of this vast resource are being developed. Here is a report of a recent development:

The Medicine Bow project will use Carbon Basin coal optioned from DKRW partner (and coal mine operator) Arch Coal to produce refined hydrocarbon liquid products. Initial commercial operation of up to a 20,000–22,000 barrels per day project is expected to start in 2014.

The coal to liquids (CTL) facility will utilize GE coal gasification technology to produce syngas, which will be cleaned to remove substantially all of the sulfur and carbon dioxide. The cleaned syngas is conditioned, modified and converted to methanol, which is then converted to gasoline via the licensed ExxonMobil Research and Engineering methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) process.

Other key elements include Selexol acid gas removal and Davy Process Technology (methanol synthesis).

MBFP says it plans to sequester the CO2 that is captured from the facility by selling the CO2 for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). MBFP earlier this year entered into a contract with a subsidiary of Denbury Resources Inc. to purchase the CO2 for use in their EOR operations. EOR has been used for years in Wyoming, West Texas and the US Gulf Coast to increase oil production from depleted oil and gas fields.

DKRW Advanced Fuels is completing final development on the project and expects to complete financing activities and ramp up construction on the facility in 2012. _GCC

Much of the western US hydrocarbon resource is located on native American Indian land. Some of these tribes are eager to cash in on their huge potential wealth, and are chafing against the Obama EPA restrictions -- which appears quite arbitrary and almost punitive to the tribes. Particularly in the light of the clean, advanced technologies which are becoming available for harvesting energy and fuels from the coal.

Around the country, at least a dozen Indian tribes are pushing for agreements with the government that would help them exploit their oil, gas and coal, said Robert Middleton, director of the Interior Department’s Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development. _Source

But these tribes are running head-on into the Obama policy of energy starvation, just like the rest of the US. Perhaps it is the Obama administration which should be locked up on a reservation, so that the rest of the nation can begin to function and prosper once again?