Stranded Gas and Bitcoin Mining: A Sustainable Solution
Every year, the oil and gas industry flares large volumes of associated gas due to the lack of infrastructure in place to transport it to markets. This overuse of natural resources is a colossal waste of energy, and according to recent studies, only 91% efficient on average at zapping methane, a potent greenhouse gas. What if there was a way to use stranded natural gas in remote areas to produce electricity for high-tech activities like cryptocurrency mining, AI, and cloud computing? It turns out this solution is not only cost-effective but also sustainable.
Flaring and Oil Production
Flaring is a common practice in crude-oil-focused producers in the US, dating back to the first oil production over a century ago in western Pennsylvania. When trying to make oil production safe, flaring was a necessary means of controlled combustion of volatile associated gas. While it made economic sense to develop gas-gathering systems and pipelines to deliver large volumes of associated gas to market, flaring was still prevalent when gas volumes were too small to justify processing infrastructure or securing permits. During the Shale Era, vast amounts of gas were flared in some areas, adversely affecting the global environment.
The Need for Sustainable Solutions
The US and more than 30 other countries have agreed to eliminate all routine non-emergency/non-safety-related flaring of natural gas by 2030. This requires extended gas gathering systems or an economic way to use associated gas onsite to generate electricity instead of flaring it. Many data centers across the US that require high-performance computing and massive amounts of energy have modular steel containers that can be placed in remote production areas. Gas-fired generator sets are trucked in to power these facilities, fueled by stranded gas produced at nearby well pads.
The Role of Bitcoin Mining in Sustainable Solutions
Crusoe Energy leads the use of stranded natural gas in modular data centers, deploying over 120 across various US shale production basins. Crusoe's patented Digital Flaring Mitigation program provides a plug-and-play gas capture service that operates as a modified gas purchase agreement. According to Crusoe, the generators used in their DFM projects can handle associated gas with a wide range of Btu content, making it an ideal power source for cryptocurrency mining.
Bitcoin mining requires staggering amounts of computational power, making it one of the most power-hungry industries globally. Crusoe Energy's sustainable solution significantly reduces the environmental impact of bitcoin mining by capturing previously flared gas, generating electricity with it, and using it to power mining operations. This innovative solution not only helps the environment but also benefits the oil and gas industry economically.
Conclusion
Sustainable solutions like using stranded natural gas to power remote data centers and bitcoin mining are essential in reducing the environmental impact of the oil and gas industry. With Crusoe Energy paving the way in modular data centers, there is hope for a more sustainable future in the energy industry.
