Employment in energy fields, including oil and natural gas sectors, continued to increase in 2017, but employers are facing challenges when seeking qualified workers to fill open positions, according to data presented during the Future Energy and Manufacturing Jobs webinar sponsored by the NETL Regional Workforce Initiative (RWFI). 

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) has selected three additional projects to receive approximately $3.3 million in federal funding for cost-shared research and development. These projects are supported through the funding opportunity announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0001728, Advanced Combustion Systems: Existing Plant Improvements and Transformational Technologies.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) selected five projects to receive approximately $10.7 million in federal funding for cost-shared research and development. The projects will advance tools and methods for assessing the state of stress and geomechanical impacts within the subsurface associated with underground carbon storage. The projects are supported through the funding opportunity announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0001826, Developing Technologies to Advance the Understanding of State of Stress and Geomechanical Impacts within the Subsurface.

For the 18th year, NETL will present the Energy and Power Generation Training Course for the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute (FSI) today through Friday to help educate future U.S. diplomats about critical national and international energy issues.

Secure and reliable natural gas delivery is essential as the industry grows to meet an increasing portion of America’s energy needs. Natural gas accounted for nearly 32 percent of the electricity produced in the United States in 2017, and the U.S. Energy Information Administration expects that figure to rise to nearly 39 percent by 2050.

An innovative bench-scale facility established at West Virginia University (WVU) in collaboration with NETL will demonstrate the feasibility of extracting rare earth elements (REEs) from acid coal mine drainage (AMD) to develop a domestic supply of REEs – an effort that will enhance America’s economic growth and national security.

NETL researchers are using a laser-based technology to create newer methods that can better quantify certain environmental impacts associated with fossil energy production or underground carbon storage by assessing gases, water and soil quality in situ underground. Specifically, the experts at NETL have adapted Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) hardware to well-bore monitoring applications, making LIBS more effective and easier to use for in-the-field subsurface research.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) has selected seven projects to receive approximately $2.8 million in federal funding for research and development projects that support fossil energy research at colleges and universities nationwide, including minority institutions. Projects under this initiative educate the next generation of scientists and engineers and help advance innovative and fundamental research focused on coal-based, fossil energy resources.