GRAND FORKS, N.D. — U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) representatives visited the University of North Dakota’s Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) on Thursday, July 30, 2026. The trip followed several recent federal project awards that further strengthen the EERC’s role in advancing the nation’s energy priorities.
The visit included a tour of the EERC’s research and demonstration facilities and strategic conversations with EERC leadership and researchers. The visit focused on maximizing the impact of the Trump administration’s recent investments in energy innovation, technology commercialization, and domestic energy production.
Three recently funded initiatives were at the heart of DOE’s visit:
- Renewal of the DOE–EERC cooperative agreement, providing up to $25 million over 5 years to continue collaborative research supporting secure, affordable, and reliable domestic energy development across hydrocarbon, geothermal, carbon management, and advanced energy technologies.
- Regional Initiative for Technical Assistance Partnerships, a $5 million DOE investment that expands the EERC’s technical assistance capabilities to accelerate carbon capture, utilization, and storage projects in the Williston Basin.
- The Carbon Capture Test Center Capital Improvement project, a $15 million DOE investment to improve the reliability and cost of the EERC’s combustion and gasification equipment for testing third-party CO2 capture technology.
In addition, the EERC and DOE are in final negotiations on Crack the Code 2.0, a $36 million DOE initiative to advance technologies that increase domestic oil recovery while extending the life of existing energy infrastructure through enhanced oil recovery research on the Bakken.
“These investments represent more than individual research projects,” said John Harju, EERC Vice President of Strategic Partnerships. “They reflect a shared commitment between DOE and the EERC to develop technologies that strengthen American energy security, expand domestic energy production, and accelerate the deployment of innovative solutions.”
The visit was an opportunity for DOE leadership and EERC researchers to align priorities, review implementation strategies, and identify opportunities to maximize the long-term value and national impact of these investments.
“The Department of Energy is committed to ensuring these investments deliver real results for the American people,” said DOE’s John Lassek, Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy Office. “The DOE and the EERC have a long history of working together turning innovative research into practical energy solutions and can maximize the value of these investments while supporting affordable, reliable American energy.”
The EERC has partnered with DOE for more than four decades, serving as one of the nation’s leading energy research organizations and helping advance technologies from early-stage research through commercial deployment.