ConsolEnergysCommercial-ScaleVentilationAirMethane.PDFVIP

CONSOL ENERGYS COMMERCIAL- SCALE VENTILATION AIR METHANE ABATEMENT PROJECTS Deborah A. Kosmack, Richard A. Winschel, William P. Fertall, and Ryan Blackwell, CONSOL Energy Inc.; Jerry Gureghian, Green Holdings Corporation; Santosh Lakhan, Verdeo 2011 U.S. Coal Mine Methane Conference Park City, Utah October 19, 2011 CONSOL Energy Inc. • 11 mine complexes in WV, PA, VA, OH o Largest producer of U.S. bituminous coal o Largest U.S. producer of underground mined coal • Gas Business Unit o CBM, shale, and conventional gas plays in 7 states • Production – 59 MM ton/y coal, 127 Bcf/y gas (2010) • Reserves – 4.4 B ton coal, 3.7 Tcf gas • $5.2 billion annual revenue • ~9,000 employees • Safety record ~2x better than coal industry average • River Operations: 27 towboats, 620 barges • Only U.S. coal company with an RD department CONSOL’s Methane Emissions  CONSOL’s greenhouse gas footprint is mostly methane  Ventilation air methane (VAM) represented 91% of the 25.5 bcf of methane emitted by CONSOL in 2006.  If legislation is passed in U.S., it is likely that coal mine methane will be either o an allowable “offset”, or o subject to a performance standard  The low concentration of methane in ventilation air, 0.3% to 1.5%, means that specialized equipment is required to capture or use it - regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer  RTO’s are designed for oxidative destruction of volatile organic compounds. Methane destruction efficiency ≥ 96%  Self-sustained operation on very dilute (0.2 – 1.4%) methane streams  Convert methane to CO2 and water, reducing global warming potential by 87%  Produces essentially no SO , NO , CO, or x