PROJECT SELECTIONS FOR PARTNERSHIPS FOR ACADEMIC-INDUSTRY CAREER TRAINING (PACT)
Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy Office-Supported Projects
Digital Field Operations Technician – New Mexico Junior College (Hobbs, New Mexico) will establish a four-week Digital Field Operations Technician (DFOT) credential consisting of stackable training in Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), artificial lift/equipment diagnostics, and networking/radio communications, using XALTER's immersive oil-and-gas simulation technology to build hands-on field competency. Devon Energy and Mewbourne Oil Company are confirmed industry-employer partners that will help align the curriculum with Permian Basin operations and recognize the DFOT as relevant preparation for field-operations employment, while America's Job Center/New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions will recruit and support participants and track employment outcomes.
DOE Funding: $1,900,000
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $1,900,000
POWER Pathways – San Jacinto Community College District (Pasadena, Texas) will add a three-course, stackable energy concentration to its Logistics and Supply Chain Management program covering energy logistics, geographic information system (GIS)/geospatial technologies, and super intelligence (SI) applications, preparing participants for logistics roles across upstream, midstream, and downstream hydrocarbon and geothermal operations. Confirmed partners include LyondellBasell and INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA, which commit curriculum/employer engagement and graduate interview or work-based-learning opportunities; Gulf Coast Workforce Board/Workforce Solutions supports recruitment, labor-market validation and work-based learning (WBL) connections, with additional commitments from IADC, Energy Industries Council, and Port Houston.
DOE Funding: $298,260
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $298,260
Geothermal Drilling – Somerset Community College (Somerset, Kentucky), in partnership with the Geothermal Drillers Association (GDA), will establish progressive 80-hour Field Technician, 160-hour Assistant Driller, and 160-hour Driller Development training to build a geothermal drilling workforce and instructor pipeline for ground-source/geothermal networks across Appalachia. Confirmed industry partners include the GDA, Durbin Enterprises, Jackson Geothermal, Water Well Solutions, and Sky Port Alliance, with multiple employers committing to curriculum validation, field demonstrations, equipment/expertise, and hiring or placement pathways. Additional workforce and regional partners support recruitment, wraparound services, employer engagement, and expansion of the geothermal drilling workforce across Appalachia.
DOE Funding: $1,500,000
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $1,500,000
EnergyPACT North Texas – Southern Methodist University (Dallas, Texas), with Dallas College as the two-year host, delivery site, and credential issuer, will create a 225-hour Energy Field Data and Infrastructure Operations Technician Certificate comprising five hands-on courses, competency badges, and external safety credentials for oil/gas operations, produced water, GIS/computer-aided design, field data/quality assurance and quality control, infrastructure and construction-support roles. Confirmed employer partners include Diamondback Energy and Birkhoff, Hendricks & Carter in funded roles plus Silver Hill Energy Partners, HEYCO Energy Group, KEW Drilling and HOG Resources as committed in-kind employers providing skill/credential validation, applied projects, work-based learning/interview access, and hiring consideration; From Ordinary to Extraordinary is the committed workforce development partner.
DOE Funding: $1,932,687
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $1,932,687
Bridge to Power – University of Alaska Fairbanks’ (Fairbanks, Alaska) Alaska Center for Energy and Power, with Alaska Vocational and Technical Center (AVTEC) as the committed two-year institution of higher education (IHE)/primary host, will establish a two-year Career and Technical Education (CTE) instructor pathway combining academic-year teaching under master instructors with industry externships; AVTEC will award credentials and retains first-offer rights for graduates entering full-time CTE instructor positions. Confirmed partners include industry employers Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) and City and Borough of Sitka Electric Department, which will inform competencies and explore externship placements, while Alaska Resource Education and Alaska Workforce Alliance provide recruitment/workforce-development support, Alaska Municipal League connects rural utility/externship networks, and University of Alaska Anchorage's Institute of Social and Economic Research serves as evaluator; Homer Electric Association provides support and indicates likely participation.
DOE Funding: $1,658,134
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $1,658,134
Produced Water Operations & Environmental Technology – University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (Edinburg, Texas), with South Texas College as the committed two-year IHE and primary training host, will establish three stackable, hands-on produced-water courses with industry credentials covering treatment/recycling, saltwater disposal/injection, field safety, process controls, equipment and environmental compliance for produced-water technicians and related oil-and-gas water occupations. Confirmed partners include produced-water employers NGL Energy Partners, Texas Pacific Water Resources and Western Midstream, plus advanced-treatment technology partner Aquafortus, which will shape job competencies, curriculum and credentials and provide or explore field exposure, interviews/internships and employment pathways; Workforce Solutions Lower Rio Grande Valley will recruit trainees and connect completers to openings.
DOE Funding: $1,500,000
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $1,500,000
Office of Indian Energy-Supported Projects
Geospatial Technologies – Leech Lake Tribal College (Cass Lake, Minnesota) will develop a new GIS Certificate Program focused on site surveying, infrastructure monitoring, geospatial technologies and cybersecurity, while also integrating geothermal energy instruction into its existing Carpentry Program, preparing Tribal students for GIS/geospatial, infrastructure, utility, environmental-monitoring, energy-efficient construction and geothermal-related careers. Confirmed employer/industry partners include Leech Lake Tribal Development, which will advise the GIS curriculum and consider graduates for internships and employment; the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Management Information Systems Division, which will support GIS/cybersecurity curriculum, WBL/job shadowing and employment consideration; and Reed & Reed Water Well Drilling, which will advise the geothermal/carpentry curriculum and explore job shadowing, internships, apprenticeships and WBL, with additional technical/workforce support from Argonne National Laboratory and the American Indian Higher Education Consortium.
DOE Funding: $2,000,000
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $2,000,000
Nondestructive Testing – Navajo Technical University (Crownpoint, New Mexico) with Arizona State University (ASU) as a committed technical/subrecipient partner, will establish hands-on Nondestructive Testing (NDT) training and ultrasonic-testing laboratory capacity to prepare students for inspection/quality careers supporting oil and gas, pipelines, power generation, utilities, manufacturing and critical energy infrastructure. ASU commits NDT instructional content, technical expertise, lab demonstrations, and hands-on training. Confirmed industry partners include Burning Sage Integrity Services, a Native American-owned NDT/integrity employer that intends to support internships, mentoring and employment recruitment, and TriaX Industries, which identifies a need for NDT-qualified manufacturing/quality personnel and encourages graduates to pursue employment. Arizona Commerce Authority supports employer/workforce connections.
DOE Funding: $299,934
Non-DOE Funding: $0
Total Funding: $299,934