DOE PLANS TO STEP UP EOR PROGRAM

Energy Sec. Hazel O'Leary has revised the U.S. Department of Energy's budget, speeding a program to demonstrate enhanced recovery projects for major types of oil fields. DOE's proposed budget for fiscal 1994, which begins Oct. 1, was increased $600 million to $19.6 billion, with the nonnuclear energy sector raised $500 million to $3.9 billion. Most of the increase is earmarked for a $205 million (35%) increase in funding for energy efficiency programs to $788 million.

April 19, 1993

2 min read

Energy Sec. Hazel O'Leary has revised the U.S. Department of Energy's budget, speeding a program to demonstrate enhanced recovery projects for major types of oil fields.

DOE's proposed budget for fiscal 1994, which begins Oct. 1, was increased $600 million to $19.6 billion, with the nonnuclear energy sector raised $500 million to $3.9 billion. Most of the increase is earmarked for a $205 million (35%) increase in funding for energy efficiency programs to $788 million.

O'Leary said, "DOE will continue in fiscal 194 to substantially redirect DOE's research and development priorities. By reinventing DOE, we are placing the emphasis on energy efficiency and conservation, renewable energy sources, natural gas utilization, and transfer of technologies from the labs to boost competitiveness, as well as several other beneficial research and science projects."

DOE increased its natural gas research and development program to $196 million in line with the administration's avowed goal of encouraging more use of gas. A major new DOE research program will focus on gas deliverability and storage.

DOE also disclosed a sharp cut in funding for coal liquefaction projects and ended all oil shale R&D in fiscal 1994.

DOE plans to spend $80.9 million for enhanced oil recovery R&D, most of which will go for a demonstration program aimed at increasing production from specific reservoir types. That program, which focused on one major reservoir class a year, will be stepped up to two reservoir classes a year.

DOE chose fluvial dominated deltaic reservoirs for its first EOR demonstration contracts and shallow shelf carbonate fields for the second. It soon will announce the winning projects in that second competition (OGJ, Mar. 8, p. 18).

Funding for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve will be flat at $173 million. DOE plans to use $111 million appropriated in prior years to buy 13,300 b/d of oil for the SPR, which has a 750 million bbl capacity and contains 577 million.

Asked if the Clinton administration might consider dropping its opposition to drilling on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge east of Prudhoe Bay field, O'Leary said, "I will go to Alaska to take a hard look ... but I'm not prepared to recommend a change in policy at this time."