American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2021 - 35

Haley points out that companies working
in Colorado increasingly turn to independent
evaluators to demonstrate their
clean credentials. " More operators are
stepping up and using varying certification
processes to verify that their gas has been
responsibly sourced, " he describes. " That
sets it apart from other production. "
Haley acknowledges that these certifications
are young and that debate remains
as to what criteria need to be met for gas
to be considered responsibly produced.
As a consensus forms and the certifications
build their reputations, he says they should
be quite beneficial.
" There are utilities with customers who
want them to be cleaner and greener. Even
as those utilities try to add renewables,
they also understand the limitations and
know they cannot meet their climate goals
without natural gas during the next few
decades. A certification process allows
them to show their customers that Colorado's
natural gas is produced under tough environmental
regulations and state-of-the-art
technology that yields a cleaner molecule. "
Going International
The WSTN analysis helps broaden
the horizons of possible destinations for
those clean molecules, Haley suggests.
The study, titled " Life Cycle Assessment
of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from
Liquefied Natural Gas Exports from North
America's West Coast for Coal-Displaced
Electricity Generation in Asia, " accounts
for the entire GHG emissions impact of
Rockies-sourced gas by assessing every
point of the LNG supply chain, starting
at the wellhead and ending with the emissions
from natural gas transmission and
distribution in China, India, South Korea,
Japan and Taiwan.
Produced in partnership with the Utah
School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration,
the study builds on earlier
academic analysis examining how U.S.
LNG exports can slash global GHG emissions.
The authors include Adebola S. Kasumu,
who was the lead author of a
previous similar emissions study while at
the University of Calgary, and Kerry Kelly
and Lauren P. Birgenheier with the University
of Utah. WSTN commissioned the
study and notes sponsors include the Ute
tribe, United Brotherhood of Carpenters,
Utah's Duchesne and Uintah counties and
the Wyoming Energy Authority.
According to WSTN, the report's most
exciting findings include:
· Net life cycle reductions of 42%55%
would remain intact even if LNG
exports to the five nations were doubled,
as the LNG would displace coal generation.
· Country-level data demonstrates
where LNG exports that displace coal
generation would have the highest impact,
which helps policymakers and corporate
decision-makers to make export choices
from both diplomatic and commercial
perspectives. For example, on a life
cycle basis, South Korea and Japan could
reduce their emissions by 54.8% and
52.1% respectively.
· In China and India, the largest emitters
with substantial coal generation footprints,
the absolute coal emissions reductions
are smaller based on the same
export levels. However, both can cut life
cycle emissions substantially-42.0% for
China and 49.8% for India.
Speaking in mid-October before the
convention, Haley noted that the panel
discussion about such a Rockies-to-Asia
energy trade connection that COGA
was planning could demonstrate such
an approach's economic and environmental
benefits.
" There are a lot of practical implications
if Colorado is able to play a bigger role
in the global energy supply and this
WSTN report demonstrates we are not
talking pie-in-the-sky guesstimates, " he
emphasizes. " This is real scientific data
showing what can happen if we export
this resource to other parts of the world. "
Substance Over Symbolism
COGA's twofold purpose for spreading
the word about Colorado's exceptionally
clean production is about influencing perceptions
and dealing with reality, Haley
reflects. " People need to understand what
our operators are doing under a rigorous
regulatory structure with innovation and
technology, " he relates. " Then we have
to look at how to make the planet's
cleanest energy molecules part of the climate
solution. "
Some places that burnish their green
bona fides by discouraging oil and gas
production arguably exacerbate GHG
emissions. Haley cites the example of
the Golden State, where even Governor
Gavin Newsom has acknowledged the
environmental toll of meeting the state's
ongoing appetite for hydrocarbons by
swapping in-state production with imports
from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries and other suppliers that
have no obligation to meet the state's
stringent rules.
" Colorado does not want to be California,
where the governor and other
elected officials have deemed fossil fuels
an enemy, " Haley contrasts. " Oil production
in that state has dropped 60%
(since 1985) while consumption has only
dropped 4%, so California meets its
energy demand by importing oil from
foreign countries. Since resources produced
in the United States-especially
Colorado-are cleaner, they are a better
solution for climate change than imports
from OPEC nations or Russia. There is a
path forward if only we have the political
will to take it. "
Of course, he observes, Colorado producers
will be hard-pressed to bolster
energy supply if they are saddled with
excessive fees, regulations and policies
that prevent permits and create practical
roadblocks.
" COGA always seeks to come to the
table with reasonable people, " Haley relates.
" We have been through a lot of
fights, but have supported many things
over the years-including phasing out
emitting pneumatics, banning routine
venting and flaring, and other changes
that show net benefits-as we develop
the Colorado molecule. We want to be
at the table, and do not want to be seen
as the enemy. "
A faction of the industry's detractors
may never be satisfied as long as hydrocarbon
production continues, but Haley
suggests practical people who focus on
meeting GHG emissions goals in a realworld
context can be persuaded that Colorado
oil and gas production is part of
the climate solution.
" We need to get past the false (all-ornothing)
choice, " he urges. " We are not
going to an all-renewable energy future
tomorrow, and people need to understand
they will need oil and natural gas for the
foreseeable future. Therefore, it is up to
us to make sure we develop it cleaner
and better and we need to show people
we are doing that, whether we are talking
with an elected leader in the halls of
Congress or citizens in Weld County or
the Piceance Basin on the Western slope. "
After all, a burgeoning world energy
crunch, facilitated in part by European
Union efforts to push their countries'
energy transitions faster than is technically
possible, is now highlighting the
importance of prudent energy policy,
Haley reflects.
" Heading into this winter, people need
to understand our country has the energy
to meet its needs while also exporting
some to other countries, " Haley advises.
" No one in this country should freeze to
death because of poor policy decisions,
whether they come from a local, state or
federal government.
But this winter, I
think we will see the most vulnerable
among us hit hard by low supply and
high prices. The solution lies under our
feet. We simply need the political will to
produce these resources here and get
them out to the rest the world. "
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NOVEMBER 2021 35
American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2021

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