Natural Gas Treating | Natural Gas | Gas Treating | Gas Processing

Natural Gas Treating
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Midstream Oil and Gas Services

Amine Plants * Cogeneration * Cryogenic Plants * Emissions Abatement * Gas Compression * Gas Gathering * Gas to Power

Gas Processing * Gas Sweetening * H2S Removal * Midstream Oil and Gas * Natural Gas Liquids * Natural Gas Treating

NGL Fractionation * NGL Recovery * Stranded Gas * Upstream Oil and Gas * Vapor Recovery * Waste Heat Recovery

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As natural gas is produced from either a natural gas well, or from an oilwell which contains "associated gas," the natural gas must be treated or processed before it can be sold/injected as "pipeline quality gas" and then be used at a home or business as a fuel.

Natural gas treating or processing, takes place at gas processing plants to remove the impurities and other hydrocarbons other than the methane itself, or CH4.

The by-products and impurities of natural gas that must be treated or processed include; ethane, propane, butane, isobutane, pentane, isopentane and higher molecular weight hydrocarbons, as well as H2S or elemental sulfur, carbon dioxide (CO2), water vapor and sometimes helium and nitrogen.

Our "Integrated" CHP Systems (Cogeneration and Trigeneration) Plants
Have Very High Efficiencies, Low Fuel Costs & Low Emissions

The Effective Heat Rate is Approximately
4100 btu/kW & System Efficiency is 92% Plant

The CHP System below is Rated at 900 kW and Features:
(2) Natural Gas Engines @ 450 kW each on one Skid with Optional
Selective Catalytic Reduction system that removes Nitrogen Oxides to "non-detect."

Our CHP Systems may be the best solution for your company's economic and environmental sustainability as we "upgrade" natural gas to clean power with our clean power generation solutions.

Our Emissions Abatement solutions reduce Nitrogen Oxides to "non-detect" which means our Trigeneration energy systems can be installed and operated in most EPA non-attainment regions!

For qualified clients we will design, build, finance, own, operate and maintain a new:

energy system, through a Power Purchase Agreement that guarantees
a minimum 10% reduction in our client's energy expenses.

(NOTE: Engineering and related interim project development expenses may be at client's expense but will be
refunded at the close of Power Purchase Agreement or other project financing. Some of our engineering
and EPC services may be provided by one of our Top-ranked ENR Engineering/EPC partner companies.)

To receive a preliminary no-obligation review of your energy, engineering or project plans,
send an introductory email to us at the following email address:

We provide engineering and midstream natural gas services which are led by a top 250 EPC engineering company, as well as smaller engineering firms assisting us with acquisitions and project development services in the following areas;

Our engineering team provides complete natural gas engineering services from the wellhead to the burner-tip with a focus in the midstream sector. Our engineering and project development development services include;

Our work is performed on a strict adherence to "vendor-neutrality" and seek to maximize our client's "triple bottom line" returns: people, planet and profits.

To receive a preliminary, no obligation consult, email us a summary or overview of your project, including the following basic information:

and your company's specific goals and objectives and send this information to us at:

Amine plants provide H2S removal as well as CO2 removal from natural gas and liquid hydrocarbons. The process involves both absorption and chemical reactions.

Amine units provide H2S removal as well as CO2 removal from natural gas and liquid hydrocarbons. The process involves both absorption and chemical reactions.

Amine, is the shortened form of " Mono Ethanol Amine" or MEA. MEA removes H2S or acid gases through a chemical reaction with hydrogen sulfide or carbon dioxide which forms a salt compound (see Gas Sweetening diagram below).

When the MEA has absorbed the H2S ( and carbon dioxide) it is referred to as " rich" MEA.

When the acid gases have been removed from the mono ethanol amine it's called lean MEA.

Amine sweetening, also referred to as "amine gas treating," "gas sweetening" and "acid gas removal," is the natural gas treating process that uses aqueous solutions of various alkylamines ("amines") for H2S removal, or removing hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and carbon dioxide (CO2) from natural gas and other gas stream.

The term "amine sweetening" and "gas sweetening" are used in hydrogen sulfide and/or mercaptans are commonly referred to as gas sweetening processes because they result in products which no longer have the sour, foul odors of mercaptans and hydrogen sulfide.

There following are the commonly used amines in natural gas treating:

Monoethanolamine (MEA)
Diethanolamine (DEA)
Methyldiethanolamine (MDEA)
Diisopropylamine (DIPA)
Aminoethoxyethanol (Diglycolamine®) (DGA®)

The most commonly used amines in industrial plants are the alkanolamines MEA, DEA, and MDEA.

BTEX removal, as utilized in the natural gas treating and natural gas industry, is the process of removing benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene from the natural gas stream and upgrading the natural gas to "pipeline quality gas."

What is BTEX?

BTEX, as defined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is the term used for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene which, as a group, are also referred to as "volatile organic compounds," and normally found in petroleum products, including gasoline and diesel fuel.

Did you know that 10% of our nation's electricity now comes from "cogeneration" plants?

And because cogeneration is so efficient, it saves its customers up to 40% on their energy expenses, and provides even greater savings to our environment through significant reductions in fuel usage and much lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Cogeneration - also known as “combined heat and power” (CHP), cogen, district energy, total energy, and combined cycle, is the simultaneous production of heat (usually in the form of hot water and/or steam) and power, utilizing one primary fuel such as natural gas, or a renewable fuel, such as Biomethane, B100 Biodiesel, or Synthesis Gas.

Cogeneration technology is not the latest industry buzz-word being touted as the solution to our nation's energy woes. Cogeneration is a proven technology that has been around for over 120 years!

Our nation's first commercial power plant was a cogeneration plant that was designed and built by Thomas Edison in 1882 in New York. Our nation's first commercial power plant was called the "Pearl Street Station."

What is Crude Oil Storage?

Crude oil storage is a process of storing crude oil, after it is produced, until such time it is used as a feedstock at refineries for making petroleum products such as diesel, gasoline, heating oil and other fuels.

What is a "Cryogenic Plant"?

A cryogenic plant is another term for a "gas processing plant." Gas processing plants produce natural gas liquids products, including ethane, at very low or "cryogenic" operating temperatures, that can range from -40 to -190 degrees below zero, depending on the cryogenic plant and the ethane or natural gas liquids they are seeking to produce.

Desiccant Dehydration using the adsorption typically consists of two (or more) adsorption towers. Each of these adsorption towers alternate between cycles wherein one tower is actively removing water/moisture from the gas stream, while the other adsorption tower is being "re-generated." Each of these adsorption towers are filled with a "desiccant" that can adsorb a limited amount of water and therefore require re-generation, typically by heat.

Standard desiccants include activated alumina or a granular silica gel material.

In the Desiccant Dehydration process, wet natural gas enters the adsorption towers, from the top and the wet natural gas flows down through the desiccant material, to the bottom. of the adsorption tower. As the wet natural gas passes around the desiccant material, water is separated from the natural gas which is "adsorbed" on the surface of these desiccant particles. By the time the natural gas reaches the bottom of the adsorption tower, over 98% of the water is adsorbed onto the desiccant material, leaving the dry gas to exit the bottom of the adsorption tower. After the desiccant in the active adsorption tower has adsorbed all the water/moisture it can, and reaches capacity, that active adsorption tower is shut down, and an adjacent adsorption tower then activates. During this time, the adsorption tower that has been shut down is "re-generated" and the water/moisture that was adsorbed by the desiccant is heated that vaporizes the water molecules, thereby "recharging" the desiccant and making it ready for use, when the adjacent adsorption tower has completed its cycle.

A gas fractionation plant is a facility that separates mixtures of light hydrocarbons into individual, or industrially pure, substances. Gas fractionation plants are an integral part of gasoline plants, gas processing plant, gas refineries, and chemical and petrochemical processing plants. The raw materials of gas fractionation plants are composed mainly of hydrocarbons containing one to eight carbon atoms per molecule. The separation process at the gas fractionation plant of the hydrocarbon mixtures is performed by fractional distillation in "column distillers."

The process for separating natural gasoline in a gas fractionation plant includes preheating of the natural gasoline in a heat exchanger and feeding it to a "propane column." The propane vapors are next "condensed" in a condenser-cooler which then flows to a a reflux vessel where the propane vapors exit from the top part of the column. Some of the propane is returned to the top of the column as a "reflux" and the excess propane is drawn off in the form of a finished product.

After preheating, the liquid from the bottom of the column is fed for further separation by the same method into the next column, where a mixture of butanes is separated from the liquid in the form of overflow, and the gasolines exit from the lower part of the column. The separation of butanes into isobutane and normal butane, as well as gasoline into isopentane, normal pentane and hexanes, continues in the same type process. approximate pure-substance content after processing of natural gasoline is approximately:

Picture of a gas processing and fractionation plant which includes: propane column, stabilization column,
isobutane column, condenser-coolers, preheaters for bottom of column, heat exchangers and coolers

Improvements in the technological system of fractionation plants are designed to reduce capital expenditures and power costs and to automate monitoring and control systems by means of electronic computers and by the installation of chromatographic product quality analyzers on flow lines.

Gas Gathering systems are the physical facilities that accumulate and transport natural gas from a well to an acceptance point of a transportation pipeline are called a gas gathering system.

Gas Gathering lines are small-diameter pipelines move natural gas from the wellhead to the gas processing plant or to an interconnection with a larger mainline pipeline. Transporting natural gas from the wellhead to the final customer involves several physical transfers of custody and multiple processing steps. A natural gas pipeline system begins at the natural gas producing well or field. Once the gas leaves the producing well, a gas gathering system directs the flow either to a gas processing plant or directly to the mainline transmission grid, depending upon the initial quality of the wellhead product.

The processing plant produces pipeline-quality natural gas. This gas is then transported by pipeline to consumers or is put into underground storage for future use. Storage helps to maintain pipeline system operational integrity and/or to meet customer requirements during peak-usage periods.

Transporting natural gas from wellhead to market involves a series of processes and an array of physical facilities. Among these are:

A first-of-its-kind, natural gas-to-liquids or "gas liquefaction" facility was built in the U.S. that produces high-performance, sulfur-free fuel. The gas liquefaction plant produces approximately 70 bbls of ultra clean fuel per day from natural gas.

A natural gas to liquids, or "gas liquefaction"
ultra clean fuels facility in the U.S.

New technologies in the "natural gas to liquids" industry decreases expenses through increased efficiencies and converts natural gas to ultra clean fuel. These facilities typically consist of three primary components: an autothermal reformer that converts the natural gas into synthesis gas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen; a Fischer-Tropsch unit that produces synthetic crude oil from the synthesis gas; and a refining unit that upgrades the synthetic crude to ultra clean fuels. These fuels can be transported through existing pipelines and have already been tested in bus fleets operated by the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the National Park Service in Denali, Alaska.

Natural Gas Processing plants separate the various hydrocarbons and natural gas liquids from the pure natural gas (methane or CH4) to produce what is known as 'pipeline quality' natural gas. Natural gas pipeline companies have requirements on natural gas they buy from producers which is why the natural gas processing plants are located where they are, and why they separate the ethane, propane, butane, and pentanes from the methane. Natural gas liquids or NGLs include ethane, propane, butane, iso-butane, and natural gasoline.

The principal service provided by a gas processing plant to the natural gas mainline transmission network is that it produces pipeline quality natural gas. Natural gas mainline transmission systems are designed to operate within certain tolerances. Natural gas entering the system that is not within certain specific gravities, pressures, Btu content range, or water content level will cause operational problems, pipeline deterioration, or even cause pipeline rupture.

Gas processing plants are also facilities designed to recover natural gas liquids from a stream of natural gas that may or may not have passed through lease separators and/or field separation facilities. These facilities also control the quality of the natural gas to be marketed. Several types of gas processing plants, employing various techniques and technologies to extract contaminants and natural gas liquids, are used to produce pipeline quality "dry" gas. At many processing plants the primary objective is the production of dry gas (demethanizing). Any remaining natural gas liquids extraction stream is directed to a separate plant to undergo what is referred to as a "gas fractionation" process.

But a number of natural gas processing plants do include these gas fractionation plants where saturated hydrocarbons are removed from natural gas and separated into distinct parts, or "fractions," such as propane, butane, and ethane. Essentially, natural gas is methane, a colorless, odorless, flammable hydrocarbon gas (CH₄). Also present in natural gas production, especially that in association with oil production, are a number of petroleum gases. They include (in addition to ethane, propane and butane) ethylene, propylene, butylene, isobutane, and isobutylene. They are derived from crude oil refining or natural gas fractionation and are liquefied through pressurization.

Sulfur exists in natural gas and is known as hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Natural gas is usually considered "sour" if hydrogen sulfides content exceeds 5.7 milligrams of H2S per cubic meter of natural gas. The process hydrogen sulfide removal from sour gas is commonly referred to as "gas sweetening."

The primary process for sweetening "sour" natural gas ("sour" natural gas contains H2S or hydrogen sulfides) is quite similar to the processes of glycol dehydration and NGL absorption. In this case, however, amine solutions are used to remove the hydrogen sulfide. This process is known simply as the 'amine process', or alternatively as the Girdler process, and is used in 95 percent of U.S. gas sweetening operations. The sour gas is run through a tower, which contains the amine solution. This solution has an affinity for sulfur, and absorbs it much like glycol absorbing water. There are two principle amine solutions used, monoethanolamine (MEA) and diethanolamine (DEA). Either of these compounds, in liquid form, will absorb sulfur compounds from natural gas as it passes through. The effluent gas is virtually free of sulfur compounds, and thus loses its sour gas status. Like the process for NGL extraction and glycol dehydration, the amine solution used can be regenerated (that is, the absorbed sulfur is removed), allowing it to be reused to treat more sour gas.

Although most sour gas sweetening involves the amine absorption process, it is also possible to use solid desiccants like iron sponges to remove the sulfide and carbon dioxide.

Sulfur can be sold and used if reduced to its elemental form. Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow powder like material, and can often be seen in large piles near gas treatment plants, as is shown. In order to recover elemental sulfur from the gas processing plant, the sulfur containing discharge from a gas sweetening process must be further treated. One sulfur recovery process is called the "Claus" process, and involves the use of thermal and catalytic reactions to extract the elemental sulfur from the hydrogen sulfide solution.

Glycol dehydration is used in the production and processing of natural gas by using a liquid desiccant that removes water from natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL).

H2S, or Hydrogen Sulfide, is a hazardous and corrosive element found in oil and natural gas which needs to be removed from the hydrocarbon before the oil or natural gas can be sold. The hydrogen sulfides are usually removed in a mid-stream gas processing facility by either iron sponges or amine plants.

Hazardous Air Pollutants or "HAPs" are generally defined as those pollutants that are known or suspected to cause serious health problems. Section 112(b) of the Clean Air Act currently identifies a list of 188 pollutants as HAPs.

What is a Heater Treater?

A "Heater Treater" is used in the oil and gas production process and is used to removes water and gas from the produced oil - and to improve its quality for sale into a crude oil pipeline or for other transport. A heater treater typically combines the following components inside the heater treater: a heater, free-water knockout, and oil and gas separator.

The Joule Thomson effect refers to the temperature of a gas that falls when it expands without doing any work (e.g. gas at constant pressure through a small orifice).

What is a JT Plant?

A JT Plant is a "Joule Thomson" plant that is also referred to as the "JT Effect." Joule Thomson are the last names of James Joule and William Thomson that discovered in 1854 that cooling occurs when non-ideal gas expands from high pressure to low pressure, i.e. for each 100 lbs of pressure drop there is a 3 degree F. temperature drop. The JT Plant's cooling effect can be increased by using the cooled gas to pre-cool the inlet gas via the heat exchanger. Depending upon the size of the heat exchanger, the JT Plant can triple the delta t or change in temperature.

A typical JT Plant is made up of 3 separate units, which include;

1. The heat exchanger - a "gas to gas" heat exchanger enhances the cooling effect of the JT process wherein the heat exchanger uses cooled the gas after - downstream - of the JT valve to pre-cool the gas going into the JT valve.

2. The JT Valve – which is a "throttling" where the gas in the gas stream is allowed to expand. The JT valve must be "super" insulated to prevent the heat transfer from the gas or to the gas.

3. The cold separator which separates the cooled gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) that will naturally "drop" out of the gas stream due to the JT plant's JT effect.

Benefits of using a JT Plant:

The BTU content of "pipeline quality gas" natural gas can have a high heating value (HHV) of 950 BTU/ft3 (low) to 1025-1060 BTU/cf.

Natural Gas with a higher BTU content condenses out more natural gas liquids (NGL's) than natural gas with a lower BTU content. Some of these natural gas liquids include; propane, butane, ethane, pentane in the natural gas pipelines. This reduces the flow through the pipeline and can potentially affect the pipeline's integrity and reliability.

Nearly all natural gas pipelines have contract specifications regarding what "pipeline quality" or "pipeline quality gas" is - i.e. water content, acceptable amounts of H2S and BTU content, etc. that suppliers have to meet to be able to use the pipeline system.

If the oil and/or natural gas reservoir pressure is high enough, a JT Plant is a highly efficient and economic method to meet natural gas pipeline requirements.

What is Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)?

Liquefied Natural Gas, or LNG, is natural gas (methane or CH4) that is cooled to - 260 degrees F. (below zero). At this temperature, natural gas turns into a liquid (liquefied natural gas) making it very economical to ship large amounts of energy in a relatively small space.

When natural gas has been liquefied, the natural gas that was once a "gas" now takes up to 600 times LESS as a liquid, as when it was in its previous gas state.

Because Liquefied Natural Gas is still natural gas, its carbon emissions as well much lower as compared to other fossil fuels, such as coal, diesel or oil.

Liquefied Natural Gas is colorless, odorless, colorless, non-corrosive and non-toxic. It weighs less than half the equivalent amount that water does.

Liquefied Natural Gas achieves a higher reduction in volume than compressed natural gas (CNG) so that the energy density of Liquefied Natural Gas is 2.4 times that of compressed natural gas or 60% of that of diesel fuel. This makes Liquefied Natural Gas a highly cost-effective fuel to transport over long distances where pipelines do not exist. Cryogenic tanks and LNG ships transport the LNG around the world on oceans and cryogenic tanks transport the LNG on trains and 18-wheelers. Think of cryogenic tanks like an insulated thermos bottle as the LNG must be kept at - 260 degrees F. (below zero) to remain in its liquid state.

Liquefied Natural Gas is used as any fuel may be used, as well as transporting natural gas to markets, where it is then re-gasified and distributed in natural gas pipelines.

Commonly referred to as either Liquid Petroleum Gas, LPG or Propane, Liquid Petroleum Gas is one of our country's most versatile and clean burning fuels, that is made in the U.S.A., and also imported from Canada and Mexico.

Liquid Petroleum Gas presently provides about 5% of our country's total energy requirements.

Liquid Petroleum Gas such as Propane exists in liquid and gas states. At atmospheric pressure and temperatures above – 44 degrees F, Liquid Petroleum Gas is a non-toxic, colorless and odorless gas.

Just like natural gas, an identifying odor called Mercaptan is added to Liquid Petroleum Gas so it can be readily detected in the event of a leak.

When contained in an approved cylinder or tank, Liquid Petroleum Gas (Propane) exists as a liquid and vapor. The vapor is released from the container as a clean-burning fuel gas. Liquid Petroleum Gas (Propane) is 270 times more compact as a liquid than as a gas, making it economical to store and transport as a liquid.

Approximately 90 percent of the United States’ Liquid Petroleum Gas supply is produced domestically, while 70% of the remaining supply is imported from Canada and Mexico. Approximately equal amounts of Liquid Petroleum Gas comes from crude oil refining and natural gas processing.

Liquid Petroleum Gas is a readily available and secure energy resource that is clean burning and has about 50% less greenhouse gas emissions than electricity and coal. Liquid Petroleum Gas is already an approved, alternative fuel vehicle fuel listed in the 1990 Clean Air Act, as well as the National Energy Policy Act of 1992.

At Home

Propane gas is the most widely used alternative fuel, with nearly 4 million vehicles worldwide running on propane. More than 350,000 vehicles run on propane in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center.

Recreation

Because Liquid Petroleum Gas is portable and clean-burning, it is used by millions of recreational vehicle owners and camping.

At the Farm

Liquid Petroleum Gas is a reliable fuel supply on nearly 700,000 farms, where it is used in a wide range of agricultural applications, such as crop drying, flame cultivation, fruit ripening, irrigation (irrigation pumps), space heating, water heating, refrigeration and farm engines.

Commercial and Industrial Markets

More than 1 million commercial businesses, including; hotels, restaurants and laundries/cleaners use Liquid Petroleum Gas in the same way a homeowner does: for heating and cooling air, heating water, cooking, refrigeration, drying clothes and lighting, as well as generating steam in process steam boilers.

More than 350,000 industrial sites rely on it for cogeneration and trigeneration power plants, space heating, brazing, soldering, cutting, heat treating, annealing, vulcanizing, and generating steam in process steam boilers. Petrochemical industries use Liquid Petroleum Gas in the manufacture of plastics.

What is LNG Liquefaction?

LNG Liquefaction is a process that refrigerates Natural Gas until it is condensed into a liquid at close to atmospheric pressure (maximum transport pressure set at around 25 kPa/3.6 psi) by the natural gas to approximately −162 °C (−260 °F) which reduces its volume to 1/600th or its original volume for ease of transportation.

Liquefied Natural Gas or simply "LNG" is natural gas which is primarily methane or CH4 that has been liquefied to reduce its volume. As previously stated, LNG is colorless, odorless, non-toxic and non-corrosive. LNG hazards include flammability, freezing and asphyxia.

The LNG Liquefaction takes place at an LNG terminal, typically located at an ocean port where one or more natural gas pipelines deliver natural gas. The natural gas has had the contaminants removed by gas processing and purification, which removes, condensates such as water, dust, helium, mud, oil, CO2, H2S and mercury. The natural gas is then cooled down in stages until it is finally liquefied at -160 degrees C. The Liquefied Natural Gas is stored in cryogenic storage tanks and loaded onto an LNG ship and shipped.

Master Limited Partnership (MLPs) are limited partnerships that are publicly traded on a securities exchange.

MLPs combine the tax benefits of Limited Partnerships with the liquidity and protection/oversight of a publicly traded security.

Master Limited Partnerships are limited by regulation to apply to specific businesses - most notably - natural resources, including; oil and natural gas extraction and transportation.

To qualify for MLP status, a partnership must generate at least 90 percent of its income from "qualifying" sources/resources. For many Master Limited Partnerships, this includes activities related to the production, processing or transportation of oil, natural gas and coal.

Master Limited Partnerships pay their investors through Quarterly Required Distributions or QRDs. The amount of the QRDs is stated in the contract between the Limited Partners (the investors) and the General Partner (the managers). Failure of the General Partner to pay the quarterly required distributions constitutes a default of the MLP Agreement.

Due to the stringent provisions on Master Limited Partnerships and the QRD, the majority of all Master Limited Partnerships are pipeline businesses, and natural gas companies engaged in the "midstream" oil and natural gas sector, which generated a reliable and steady income from the oil and natural gas sector.

Because MLPs are a partnership, there is no corporate income tax at either the state or federal level. The Limited Partners (investors) are able to record a pro-rated share of the investment in the Master Limited Partnership's depreciation on their personal income tax filings which further reduces their (that year's) tax liabilities. This is the primary benefit of Master Limited Partnerships and provides MLPs relatively inexpensive funding and capital costs. Simultaneously, this makes Master Limited Partnerships unattractive to "tax-deferred funds" that are unable to utilize this tax savings advantage. To encourage tax-deferred investors, MLPs set up new corporation holding companies for their Limited Partner's claims which can then issue equity.

In most new Master Limited Partnerships, the General Partner starts out with a small stake or position in the company - typically in the 2% to 5% range. However, the MLP receives "incentive distributions" from the net income after the Quarterly Required Distributions. As the incentive distributions are normally paid in the form of increased equity claims this allows the General Partner to attain an increasingly greater percentage of ownership in the company over time.

Midstream Assets include those assets and services that link the supply side of the value chain within the industry, to the demand side for for these energy commodities.

The Midstream Assets and the Midstream Oil and Gas sector is the bridge between the energy producers and the energy end-users and - therefore, can only be as strong as the weakest link or bridge within the midstream oil and gas sector.

The downstream sector usually refers to crude oil refineries and the selling and distribution of natural gas and products derived from crude oil. These products include Liquefied Petroleum Gas or "LPG," gasoline, jet fuel, diesel fuel, and other fuel oils, as well as asphalt and petroleum coke.

What are Natural Gas Liquids?

Natural Gas Liquids or "NGL" are those hydrocarbons in natural gas that are separated from the gas as liquids through the process of absorption, condensation, adsorption, or other methods in gas processing or cycling plants.

Natural Gas Liquids include ethane, propane, butane, iso-butane, and pentane or natural gasoline. These NGLs are sold separately and have a number of different uses which include; enhanced oil recovery in oil wells, providing raw materials for oil refineries or petrochemical plants and as sources of liquid fuel such as propane.

Typically, these liquids consist of propane and heavier hydrocarbons and are commonly referred to as lease condensate, natural gasoline, and liquefied petroleum gas.

There are periods of time in peak periods of natural gas use, that a natural gas company (pipeline or LDC) may not be able to keep up with these peak demand periods. Natural gas storage is a way to help provide for the natural gas reserves or natural gas supplies that are needed during these peak demand periods. Having strategically-located natural gas storage capabilities can assist natural gas pipelines or LDCs provide the natural gas supply when their customers demand.

Recent governments studies conclude that demand for clean-burning natural gas has continued to rise. In the last 20 years, natural gas consumption has risen nearly 25%.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates there are over 2,100 Trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of "technically recoverable natural gas" reserves in the United States, as reported in the EIA's 2010 Annual Energy Outlook. In 2009, the United States used just over 22 Trillion cubic feet of natural gas, making the U.S. one of the global leaders in natural gas consumption. This means the U.S. has enough natural gas supply to last about 100 years.

With greater demand comes greater need to be able to store natural gas. In the past 20 years, natural gas storage has increased less than 5%. This creates a serious constraint that can impact our nation by failing to keep up with natural gas supply and demand. Existing natural gas storage facilities will not be able to keep up with the demand for natural gas during increasingly greater periods of increasing demand, which could cost all consumers of natural gas billions of dollars.

There is a critical need for new high-volume natural gas storage facilities to meet the escalating demand for natural gas which will provide predictability of natural gas supply and reduce or eliminate volatility of natural gas prices during peak periods. Natural gas storage "balance" the load - or supply and demand requirements of all natural gas consumers and provides the "cushion" needed for large supplies of natural gas to serve all consumers during periods of peak demand.

Natural gas storage can take place in a number of underground natural gas facilities. From the time the natural gas is produced, it may be stored temporarily in underground natural gas storage facilities that may be one or more of the following; depleted oil or natural gas fields/reservoirs, salt dome caverns/salt dome storage or former aquifers.

Most of the natural gas storage in the U.S. takes place in naturally-occurring natural gas or oil reservoirs that have been depleted through production. An underground gas storage facility must contain enough “base gas” or “cushion gas” that provides adequate pressure to re-produce and extract the natural gas.

Natural gas treating or processing, takes place at gas processing plants to remove the impurities and other hydrocarbons other than the methane itself, or CH4.

NGL, or natural gas liquids fractionation plants purpose is to separate the mixed natural gas liquids stream into separated products. These natural gas liquids that are separated by heat at NGL Fractionation plants include; ethane, propane, normal butane, isobutane and natural gasoline.

Toward the end of the gas processing process and natural gas treating process, wherein the "raw" natural gas (methane or CH4) is readied for sale as "pipeline quality gas," the recovery of the valuable natural gas liquids (NGL) takes place. In many gas processing facilities, a cryogenic plant - which provides low-temperature distillation that recovers the natural gas liquids. The residue gas from the NGL recovery process, is the purified pipeline quality gas that is sold via pipeline and sent so end-users such as LDCs (local distribution companies - or natural gas utility) for distribution via natural gas mains in their cities and markets.

Other NGL recovery methods include an NGL fractionation "train" which typically consists of three distillation towers in a series. The series occurs in the following order:

The overhead product from the deethanizer is ethane - after which the bottoms flow to the depropanizer. The overhead product from the depropanizer is propane and the bottoms then flow to the debutanizer. The overhead product from the debutanizer is a mixture of normal butane and iso-butane. The bottoms products are a C5+ mixture. Most cryogenic plants, however, do not include fractionation due to economic reasons. Therefore the NGL stream is then transported as a mixed product to separate, standalone fractionation plants that are located near refineries or chemical plants that need these NGLs feedstock.

"Pipeline Quality Gas," is the purified and processed form of natural gas (CH4, natural gas or methane) that has had impurities, natural gas liquids and contaminants such as H2S (hydrogen sulfide) removed to meet "pipeline quality" requirements. This makes the natural gas useable to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Raw biogas, in order to become Biomethane or Pipeline Quality Gas, must for from "Biogas to Biomethane" wherein the impurities and contaminants of the biogas are removed. This process of biogas purification to biomethane is also called "Gas Sweetening." The impurities and contaminants of biogas that need to be removed to then have Biomethane or Pipeline Quality Gas include; carbon dioxide (CO2), water, hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and Siloxane. Some of the Biogas to Biomethane technologies include; iron sponge, water scrubbing, membrane separation, pressure swing adsorption (PSA), and mixing with higher quality gases.

Natural gas, crude oil and other fuels have been stored in underground salt domes and salt caverns for nearly seventy years. There are many reasons that salt domes and salt caverns are used for natural gas storage as well as crude oil storage and storage of other petroleum based hydrocarbons. Chief among these are that salt dome storage provide; energy/fuel efficiencies, security, safety, strategic supply solutions, ability to meet peak demand requirements, cost-savings and protection from; fire, vandalism, hurricanes, tornados, acts of terrorism and all with extremely low environmental risk.

Salt dome storage and salt caverns provides the lowest cost solution for crude oil storage and natural gas storage (and other hydrocarbons) and represents an environmentally-secure method for storing America's energy resources for very long periods of time. For example, storing crude oil in artificially-created salt caverns deep within the rock-hard salt costs historically about $3.50 per barrel in capital costs. Crude oil storage in above-ground tanks, by comparison, can cost $15 to $18 per barrel - or at least five times the expense. Because salt caverns are 2,000 to 4,000 feet below the surface, geologic pressures will seal any/all cracks that may develop in the salt formation, assuring that no crude oil leaks from the cavern. An added benefit is the natural temperature difference between the top of the caverns and the bottom - a distance of around 2,000 feet; the temperature differential keeps the crude oil continuously circulating in the caverns, giving the oil a consistent quality.

How are salt caverns created?

Salt caverns are "carved" from underground salt domes by a technology called "solution mining." Solution mining involves a process whereby a well is drilled into an underground salt formation and then injecting large volumes of fresh water. The water dissolves the salt. In creating the salt caverns, the dissolved salt was removed as brine and either re-injected into salt water disposal wells or, alternatively, may be piped several miles offshore into the Gulf of Mexico. By carefully controlling the pressure and direction of the freshwater injection process, salt caverns of very precise dimensions can be created.

How does salt dome storage contain the oil or natural gas?

Rock salt has a combination of characteristics that make it very attractive for the storage of crude oil and natural gas as well as other petroleum fuels. If the rock salt is relatively pure and does not contain significant amounts of other types of rock, it is generally impervious to both liquids and gases and inert to petroleum. Rock salt has a compression strength comparable to concrete under the weight of the overlying and surrounding rock. Rock salt will "move" like plastic to seal incipient fractures, and can be mined easily by dissolving it with water.

Stranded Gas, also referred to as "stranded natural gas," refers to natural gas that has been discovered but has not, or will not be developed due to their location or the economics of getting the natural gas delivered to the marketplace.

Did you know that approximately 40% of the world's available natural gas reserves are classified as stranded gas?

The Department of Energy estimates that there are 3,000 Tcf of stranded gas world-wide!

Stranded gas may be stranded - or become stranded in the future, for several reasons;

* the nearest natural gas pipeline may be too far from the well in terms of the economics of running a new pipeline.
* the volume of natural gas produced may not be of sufficient quantities for the natural gas pipeline company.
* the quality of the natural gas produced may not meet the "pipeline quality gas" specifications of the natural gas pipeline
company.
* the amount of natural gas produced from the well may decline over the years to amounts that do not meet the natural gas
pipeline's minimum amounts among other reasons.

One of our solutions for oil and gas companies with stranded gas is to use the stranded gas as fuel that generates clean electricity with one of our "gas to power" solutions using gas turbine generators. Our affiliated company manufactures gas turbine gensets For as little as $785/kW (plus shipping costs and any related set-up costs) you could be generating revenues with one of our gas turbine generators!

Natural gas pipelines have transported natural gas safely, reliably, and economically to the marketplace whenever large reservoirs of natural gas are found in locations where there were existing pipelines. Even for new natural gas fields, where there are large reservoirs and supplies of natural gas, pipelines were laid to transport the natural gas to markets. However, natural gas supplies from easy to find, and easy to produce fields have been on the decline. This leaves the "stranded gas" from the fields that have not been developed due to the economics, location, or the supply was not large enough. Stranded gas wells and reservoirs are becoming increasingly attractive opportunities as we can make the stranded gas a new profit center for your company.

We can help your company turn unproductive, zero revenue stranded gas assets into economic cash flows and a new source or revenues. Stranded gas wells with a nearby electric transmission line with a minimum production of approximately 70,000 cubic feet of natural gas per day - can become a new profit center with our assistance!

Do you have a minimum of 400 mcf/day from your stranded gas well? If yes, we can install an affiliated company's gas turbine generator and generate about 1.0 MW of electricity, 24 x 7 x 365.

We can take stranded gas gas wells that have been plugged & abandoned years ago, and make them productive and profitable by taking the stranded gas and placing one or more of our power plants at or near the site - and using the stranded gas as the fuel to generate power, selling the electricity to the electric grid - thereby creating a new profit center from shut-in wells. Shut-in natural gas wells can be made productive, with new revenues from generating our gas to power solutions. Or, if there is a nearby commercial or industrial operation that needs hot water or steam, we can develop a cogeneration power plant as well, selling them the thermal energy and the power to the electric grid.

It's much easier to transport electrons long distances, than it is to transport natural gas long distances.

Alternatively, depending on the location, we may be able to place LNG equipment near Stranded Gas wells and convert the natural gas to Liquefied Natural Gas, and then transport the LNG to a nearby market.

We provide Flare Gas Recovery, Vapor Recovery Units and "Stranded Gas" solutions. We offer turnkey, "vendor-neutral" power/energy project development products and services. Unlike most companies, we are equipment supplier/vendor neutral. This means we help our clients select the best equipment for their specific application. This approach provides our customers with superior performance, decreased operating expenses and increased return on investment.

Terminalling and Storage is a term used in the oil and natural gas industry that refers to the midstream natural gas gathering and crude oil gathering, pipeline, transportation and storage facilities. Terminals are facilities where natural gas and crude oil is transferred to or from storage, transportation network (other pipelines or trucks) for distribution, refining (for crude oil) or gas processing (for natural gas). Terminals are an integral and key component in the natural gas and crude oil to end-users by providing natural gas storage and crude oil storage, as well as inventory management, distribution and gas processing and blending to achieve "pipeline quality gas" and specific crude oil grades.

Trigeneration is the simultaneous production of three forms of energy - typically, Cooling, Heating and Power - from only one fuel input. Put another way, our trigeneration power plants produce three different types of energy for the price of one.

Trigeneration energy systems can reach overall system efficiencies of 86% to 93%. Typical "central" power plants, that do not need the heat generated from the combustion and power generation process, are only about 33% efficient.

Trigeneration Diagram & Description
Trigeneration Power Plants' Have the Highest System Efficiencies and are
About 300 % More Efficient than Typical Central Power Plants

One of our company's principal's first experience with the design and development of a trigeneration power plant was the trigeneration power plant installation at Rice University in 1987 where our trigeneration development team started out by conducting a "cogeneration" feasibility study. The EPC contractor that Rice University selected installed the trigeneration power which included a 4.0 MW Ruston gas turbine power plant, along with waste heat recovery boilers and Absorption Chillers. A "waste heat recovery boiler" captures the heat from the exhaust of the gas turbine. From there, the recovered energy was converted to chilled water - originally from (3) Hitachi Absorption Chillers - 2 were rated at 1,000 tons each, and the third Hitachi Absorption Chiller was rated at 1,500 tons. The Hitachi Absorption Chillers were replaced shortly after their installation by the EPC company. The first trigeneration plant at Rice University was so successful, they added a second 5.0 MW trigeneration plant so today, Rice University is now generating about 9.0 MW of electricity, and also producing the cooling and heating the university needs from the trigeneration plant and circulating the trigeneration energy around its campus.

Trigeneration Chart
Trigeneration's "Super-Efficiency" compared
with other competing technologies
As you can see, there is No Competition for Trigeneration!

Our trigeneration power plants are the ideal onsite power and energy solution for customers that include: Data Centers, Hospitals, Universities, Airports, Central Plants, Colleges & Universities, Dairies, Server Farms, District Heating & Cooling Plants, Food Processing Plants, Golf/Country Clubs, Government Buildings, Grocery Stores, Hotels, Manufacturing Plants, Nursing Homes, Office Buildings / Campuses, Radio Stations, Refrigerated Warehouses, Resorts, Restaurants, Schools, Server Farms, Shopping Centers, Supermarkets, Television Stations, Theatres and Military Bases.

At about 86% to 93% net system efficiency, our trigeneration power plants are about 300% more efficient at providing energy than your current electric utility. That's because the typical electric utility's power plants are only about 33% efficient - they waste 2/3 of the fuel in generating electricity in the enormous amount of waste heat energy that they exhaust through their smokestacks.

Trigeneration is defined as the simultaneous production of three energies: Cooling, Heating and Power. Our trigeneration energy systems use the same amount of fuel in producing three energies that would normally only produce just one type of energy. This means our customers that have our trigeneration power plants have significantly lower energy expenses, and a lower carbon footprint.

The Upstream Oil and Gas segment is a term that refers to the searching, drilling and production of crude oil and natural gas. The Upstream Oil and Gas segment is also known as the "exploration and production" or "E&P" segment.

The Upstream Oil and Gas segment includes; exploring for potential underground (or underwater) oil and natural gas fields (or reservoirs), drilling of exploratory wells, and operating/producing the oil and natural gas wells that "pay" with crude oil and/or natural gas.

A vapor recovery unit is a device that captures or recovers valuable volatile organic compounds and other rich gas streams that may otherwise be a significant environmental pollutant or hazardous air pollutant. A well designed vapor recovery unit can pay for itself in less than 3 years and simultaneously mitigate a company's exposure to environmental liabilities.

There are more than 500,000 smokestacks in the U.S. that are "wasting" heat, an untapped resource that can be converted to energy with Waste Heat Recovery technologies.

About 10% of these 500,000 smokestacks represent about 75% of the available wasted heat which has a stack gas exit temperature above 500 degrees F. which could generate approximately 50,000 megawatts of electricity annually and an annual market of over $75 billion in gross revenues before tax incentives and greenhouse gas emissions credits.

Waste Heat Recovery technologies represent the least cost solution which provides the greatest return on investment, than any other possible green energy technology or "carbon free energy" opportunity!