Oil giant ExxonMobil Corp is running a pilot program to use excess natural gas that would have otherwise been flared off from North Dakota oil wells to power crypto mining operations. Exxon is also considering running similar pilots in other countries, according to officials involved in the matter.
In Brief:
- Exxon is collaborating with Crusoe Energy Systems Inc. to take gas from an oil well pad in Bakken for powering Bitcoin mining.
- Similar pilot projects are expected in Alaska, the Qua Iboe Terminal in Nigeria, Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale field, Guyana and Germany.
Launched in January 2021, the pilot project was expanded in July 2021. As per reports, The project consumes 18 million cubic feet of gas per month that would have otherwise been flared due to the insufficiency of pipelines.
The oil giant has a contract with Crusoe Energy Systems Inc. to take gas from an oil well pad in the Bakken (North Dakota) for powering mobile generators used to run Bitcoin mining servers on site.
The largest U.S. oil producer, Exxon, is planning to run similar pilots in Alaska, the Qua Iboe Terminal in Nigeria, Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale field, Guyana and Germany, as per sources.
Spokeswoman Sarah Nordin informed, “We continuously evaluate emerging technologies aimed at reducing flaring volumes across our operations.” Notably, Exxon expects to meet the World Bank’s call to end routine flaring by 2030.
However, she has refused to comment on “rumors and speculations regarding the pilot project.”
Exxon is certainly following the footsteps of ConocoPhillips which was also routing excess natural gas from one of its Bakken region projects in North Dakota to supply the necessary power to a bitcoin (BTC) mining operation, in a similar feat.
Interestingly, both ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips were among the founders of the OOC Oil & Gas Blockchain Consortium, a group of energy companies working to create “key blockchain standards, frameworks and capabilities” within the industry.
