The University of Wyoming (UW) today announced a $2 million gift from Peabody Energy to create the Peabody Energy Clean Coal Technology Laboratory in the UW Energy Resource Center in Laramie.
This gift will be doubled by the Wyoming State Legislature matching fund.
Wyoming is investing significant resources in clean coal research and has committed nearly $75 million, which has resulted in partnerships with industry leaders - such as Peabody - who prioritize developing and commercializing clean coal technologies, said UW President Tom Buchanan.
"Research in the area of clean coal technology is one of the particular emphases for our School of Energy Resources, and this gift provides laboratory space for the expanding work that UW faculty and students are doing in this field," said Buchanan. "This serves as an excellent example of how university research and industry application can work together with support from state government to make Wyoming a leader in clean coal technology."
As part of the School of Energy Resources, the Peabody Energy Clean Coal Technology Laboratory will house research facilities to develop coal-fueled energy technologies, with an emphasis on the next generation of low-carbon and near-zero emissions. These include carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) and laboratory-scale coal gasification, which involve hydromethanation (a process that enables the highly efficient conversion of coal into clean, pipeline quality methane) research, synthesis gas conversion, catalyst development and materials research.
"Peabody is a global leader in clean coal solutions, advancing more than a dozen projects and partnerships to commercialize near-zero emissions technologies," said Peabody Energy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gregory H. Boyce. "We applaud the University of Wyoming and the state for leadership in this research."
Carbon capture and storage compresses carbon dioxide into a fluid-like state and injects it underground to further recover oil or for deep storage into saline aquifers or other geology. Coal gasification can convert coal to natural gas, transportation fuels and chemicals.
The gift brings together UW and industry experts to capitalize on Wyoming's significant investment in developing clean energy market technologies, said UW Foundation President Ben Blalock.
"Peabody's partnership with UW's energy programs is another major corporate tie for Wyoming's university," said Blalock. "The Clean Coal Technology Laboratory will serve as an asset to our university, our state and the energy industry."
As an example of increasing global interest in managing carbon, the Obama administration is encouraging broad deployment of CSS technologies. This includes as many as 10 commercial-scale CCS demonstrations that could come online as quickly as 2016.
Peabody is the top producer in Wyoming's Powder River Basin and a global leader in clean coal solutions, advancing signature projects around the world to commercialize near-zero emission technologies, including GreenGen in China, the COAL21 Fund and Global Carbon Capture and Storage Initiative in Australia, and FutureGen in the United States.
Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU) is the world's largest private-sector coal company and a global leader in clean coal solutions. With 2009 sales of 244 million tons and $6 billion in revenues, Peabody fuels 10 percent of U.S. power and 2 percent of worldwide electricity, lighting cities on six continents. Peabody is energizing the world, one Btu at a time.
