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LCO Technologies Canada: Methane Venting Mitigation from Pneumatics, Conventional Oil and Gas 

LCO Technologies Canada developed an economical method of eliminating methane venting by leveraging sunlight. The technology uses equipment with low-cost pneumatic instrumentation and small power requirements that can be met with solar power. The potential of the solar array is increased through the use of the Crossfire Smart Battery Charger, a charger that utilizes Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) technology to extract the maximum available power from the solar panels and store it in batteries used to run the equipment.

Images of an oil and gas facility located in Northern Canada where LCO Technologies have installed their technology.

LCO Technologies implemented the system in an oil and gas facility in Northern Canada. The site runs on less than 100 watts at 24VDC (DC current voltage) generated from solar panels.

Key technical attributes of the site include:

  • The site uses a 4 well fractured pad with automatic chokes
  • All control valving is pneumatic, which is inherently failsafe and ensures the lowest cost
  • Pumps run at 4 watts each
  • Solar panels operate on as little as 3 hours of useable daylight (December)
  • System provides data logging and is fully Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) integrated for tracking emissions and energy use
  • Anticipated methane emission reductions are 900 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2e).

The technology has been operating for over 12 months with zero emissions and LCO Technologies anticipates methane emission reductions of up to 900 MTCO2e annually per equivalent well site.

While the system is currently only implemented in Canada, LCO Technologies believes that the equipment can be used at all conventional oil and gas producing sites due to the versatility and adaptability of the technology. LCO Technologies is partnering with the government of Canada, the government of Alberta, and Petroleum Technology Alliance of Canada to advance this technology and has received expressions of interest from parties in the Middle East, Australia, and the United States.