[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 177 (Tuesday, September 13, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56412-56413]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-23328]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other
Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program 2011 Annual Plan
AGENCY: Office of Fossil Energy, Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of report availability.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Fossil Energy announces the availability of the
2011 Annual Plan for the Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas
and Other Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program on the
DOE Web site at http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/oilgas/ultra_and_unconventional/2011-2012_Committees/2011_annual_plan.pdf or in
print form (see ``Contact'' below). The 2011 Annual Plan is in
compliance with the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Subtitle J, Section
999B(e)(3) which requires the publication of this plan and all written
comments in the Federal Register.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elena Melchert, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of Oil and Natural Gas, Mail Stop FE-30, 1000
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585 or phone: (202) 586-5600
or e-mail to UltraDeepwater@hq.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Executive Summary [Excerpted From the 2011 Annual Plan p. iii]
As the Nation transitions to the clean energy economy of the
future, we must also ensure that we effectively mitigate the risks of
our current energy portfolio.
This 2011 Annual Plan, the fifth such plan to be produced since the
launch of the Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other
Petroleum Resources Research Program, reflects an important shift in
priorities towards safety and environmental sustainability. This shift
is based on the recognition that a critical element in prudently
developing our domestic resource base is a scientific assessment of the
risks which exploration and production activities entail, and the
development of appropriate technologies and processes to mitigate these
risks.
Domestic deepwater and ultra-deepwater oil and gas resources, and
domestic unconventional natural gas resources, are important
contributors to our Nation's energy supply portfolio. Recent events,
the Macondo well blowout and the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the
Gulf of Mexico, and growing public opposition to the rapid pace of
shale gas development onshore are stark reminders of the environmental
risks of our current energy portfolio. The 2011 Annual Plan proposes
scientific research that will quantify and mitigate risks associated
with oil and gas exploration and production onshore and offshore,
thereby improving safety and minimizing environmental impacts.
The Department will ensure that the federal government's
understanding of the risks associated with these operations keeps pace.
This will be accomplished through scientific assessment of the risks,
potential impacts, and adequacy of current response and mitigation
technologies.
The research discussed in this Annual Report will be administered
by the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA), which
operates under the guidance of the Secretary of Energy. RPSEA is a
consortium which includes representatives from industry, academia and
research institutions. RPSEA's expertise in all areas of the
exploration and production value chain ensure that the Department of
Energy's research program has access to relevant emerging technologies
and processes, and that projects are designed in a way that have a
direct impact on practices in the field.
Background
Offshore and onshore research activities are administered pursuant
to an annual plan in compliance with Title IX, Subtitle J of EPACT,
which directs that $50 million per year of federal royalties, rents and
bonus payments be used to fund an oil and natural gas research and
development (R&D) effort, the Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional
Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Research Program (Program).
The Secretary of Energy approves all awards to research performers,
and the planned R&D activities support the goals and objectives of the
annual plan. The research activities are administered by a Program
Consortium that has been selected by the Secretary, as detailed in the
Program Consortium section below.
The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) is responsible for
implementation of the Program. Within NETL, the responsibility for
overall program implementation, including oversight of the Program
Consortium contract, has been assigned to the Strategic Center for
Natural Gas and Oil.
Complementary research prescribed under Section 999A(d) is carried
out by NETL's Office of Research and Development.
Program Consortium
In 2006, DOE selected the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for
America (RPSEA) through a competitive solicitation to serve as the
Program Consortium and administer the research activities pursuant to
Section 999B(c).
RPSEA has a broad membership base that includes representatives
from all levels and sectors of both the oil and natural gas exploration
and production (E&P) and oil and natural gas R&D communities. The
breadth of membership helps to ensure that R&D funds leverage existing
industry efforts in accomplishing the Program's objectives.
Administration funds provided to RPSEA cannot exceed 10 percent
pursuant to Section 999G(3). The private companies, universities, and
other organizations that are awarded contracts through this program
provide cost-share contributions of at least 20 percent.
The Annual Plan Development Process
Pursuant to Section 999B(e)(2)(A), the Program Consortium prepared
its 2011 Draft Annual Plan (DAP) which it delivered to the Secretary
July 2010. The Department of Energy prepared a Draft 2011 Annual Plan.
Subsequently, the Draft 2011 Annual Plan and the DAP were reviewed by
the Unconventional Resources Technology Advisory Committee (URTAC)
which presented
[[Page 56413]]
its final report of findings and recommendations in October 2010.
On February 2, 2011, the Secretary of Energy appointed new members
to his Ultra-Deepwater Advisory Committee (UDAC), and met with the
members on February 23, 2011 to discuss his goals for offshore research
and development. Before presenting its final report of findings and
recommendations to the Secretary in April 2011, the UDAC established a
Subcommittee on Risk Assessment.
The Department of Energy will be continually informed by the UDAC
based on the work of its Subcommittee on Risk. In addition, other
Federal advisory bodies will help inform the Department. These include
the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) which established a
Subcommittee on Natural Gas, and the Department of the Interior's Ocean
Energy Safety Committee (OESC) which has established four subcommittees
including the Spill Prevention Subcommittee, and the Containment
Subcommittee. The Department of Energy is a member of the OESC. The
Department will take new information into account in the preparation of
solicitations and the selection of research projects for the 2011
portfolio.
Issued in Washington, DC, on September 7, 2011.
Christopher A. Smith,
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Oil and Natural Gas, Office of
Fossil Energy.
[FR Doc. 2011-23328 Filed 9-12-11; 8:45 am]
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