The Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA) has released the first of six 2010 Ultra-Deepwater Program requests for proposals (RFPs) to award $22 million in oil and natural gas research and development projects.
This is RPSEA’s fourth ultra-deepwater RFP release under the Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program that was established by the Department of Energy (DOE) pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
The projects selected under the 2010 Ultra-Deepwater Program are to develop safely the ultra-deepwater resource base, while efficiently extracting natural gas. The goal is to ensure that control, safeguard and environmental impact mitigation strategies are adequate to prevent any environmental damage associated with oil and gas development.
RPSEA’s Ultra-Deepwater Program will release a total of six RFPs over the next few months. The following is a list of the various focus areas for the 2010 RFPs:
- Continued work in current projects
- Drilling, completion and intervention breakthroughs
- Significantly extending subsea tieback distances and surface host elimination
- Dry trees – direct well intervention and risers in 10,000 fwd
- Associated safety and environmental concerns
- Appraisal and development geosciences and reservoir engineering
RPSEA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit consortium with more than 180 members, including 22 of the US’premier research universities, six national laboratories, other major research institutions, large and small energy producers and energy consumers.
Funding for the projects is provided through the Department of Energy’s Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program established pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This program, funded from lease bonuses and royalties paid by industry to produce oil and gas on federal lands, is specifically designed to maximize the value of natural gas and other petroleum resources of the United States by increasing the supply of such resources, through reducing the cost and increasing the efficiency of exploration for and production of such resources, while improving safety and minimizing environmental impacts. RPSEA is under contract with the DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.