Every year, the EERC and the PCOR Partnership partners gather at the PCOR Annual Meeting, which includes partner networking opportunities and discussion on the latest advancements in CO2 management on a regional level. Topics include recent program accomplishments; CO2 storage strategies and technologies; regulatory and infrastructure developments; and future carbon capture, utilization, and storage activities in the region. This year’s meeting was held May 24-25 at the Marriott Anchorage Downtown in Anchorage, Alaska. Personnel from 60 companies and 13 states, plus D.C., were in attendance, for a total of 129 participants, including EERC personnel.
This year, two Pioneer Awards were presented at the meeting. The award recognizes people whose individual support, including time and technical expertise, improve and expand the PCOR Partnership. Those honored are true partners and strong advocates of the PCOR Partnership.
The first Pioneer Award was presented to Wade Boeshans. Originally from Beulah, ND, Wade is the Executive Vice President of Summit Carbon Solutions—a company that captures CO2 before it is emitted into the atmosphere and channels it to North Dakota where it will be permanently and safely stored deep underground.
The second Pioneer Award was presented to Mike Holmes. As Vice President of Research and Development for the Lignite Energy Council, Mike’s principal areas of interest include CO2 capture; fuel processing; and gasification systems for coproduction of hydrogen, fuels, and chemicals with electricity. Prior to joining the LEC, he served as Director of Energy Systems Development at the EERC, where he oversaw fossil energy research areas.
These individuals, along with all past Pioneer Award recipients, have truly shown their support of our continuing mission toward the advancement of CCUS. Congratulations to Wade and Mike.
The PCOR Partnership—funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) through its Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Initiative, the North Dakota Industrial Commission (NDIC), and partner organizations—is an initiative dedicated to accelerating the commercial deployment of CCUS. The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) leads the PCOR Partnership, with support from the University of Wyoming and the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The goal of the partnership is to advance technology, business cases, and regulatory environments to deploy CCUS.