Today, Chevron Technology Ventures, LLC (CTV) announced three winners of the Chevron Tech Challenge for Produced Water, a challenge created as part of a Cooperation Agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) and CTV. FE provided subject matter expertise to CTV.
FE’s partnership with Chevron on this effort supports the Water Security Grand Challenge, a White House initiated, DOE-led framework to advance transformational technology and innovation to meet the global need for safe, secure, and affordable water. In particular, the Chevron Tech Challenge is aligned with the Water Security Grand Challenge goal to transform the energy sector’s produced water from a waste to a resource.
The Chevron Tech Challenge for Produced Water, announced in June 2018, was conducted in collaboration between CTV and FE. The challenge seeks to develop cost-effective produced water management solutions applicable to U.S. oil and gas extraction through “open-source” calls for proposals. The three winners are:
- Crystal Clearwater Resources from Frisco, Texas
- Mangrove Water Technologies from Vancouver, British Columbia
- Techverse, Inc. from Cary, North Carolina.
The winners will each receive a $25,000 award in recognition for their innovative technologies and solutions. Their proposals were selected based on criteria that included minimization of waste streams, technology design, and per-barrel cost.
“I congratulate the awardees,” said Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, Steven Winberg. “Managing the water produced during oil and gas activities is a growing challenge, and it’s one of the focuses of the Department of Energy’s Fossil Energy Research and Development program. I believe the approaches announced today will help address this challenge.”
As part of the continuing cooperation, FE and CTV will continue to share technical expertise and related information, keep each other apprised of related efforts, and seek out other potential collaboration opportunities over time.