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WILL OBAMA MAKE COALBED METHANE A POPULAR ENERGY SOURCE?
Coal Bin article by Harold Hough Aug/Sept 2009

Last year the coal industry was shocked when candidate Obama told a reporter that he would bankrupt the coal industry. Unfortunately, since he has become president, he has done little to assuage those concerns. However, one coal based energy source, coalbed methane (CBM), might see a new boost in demand, especially given the fact that White House Chief-of-staff, Rahm Emanual is known as a fan of natural gas.
Coalbed methane is already a growing percentage of America's natural gas market. But, its future wasn't always so bright. Methane has been the bane of underground coal miners as a source of mine explosions and deaths from asphyxiation. In the 1970s, the US Bureau of Mines even decided to find economical ways to reduce the amount of CBM in order to reduce the chances of explosions. The answer, they discovered, was to drill wells into the coal seam in order to reduce the gas pressure. It not only reduced the pressure, but it provided a new source of energy. Within ten years, CBM was becoming an energy industry. Now it provides about eight percent of the natural gas used in the US. And, it could easily be a bigger contributor if coal mines are forced to rely on CBM production in order to continue operating at a profit.
Although Obama's energy plans contain many questionable energy sources, at least CBM is a tried and true energy source. Australia is home to the biggest coal mine and CBM power project in the world - The Moura Mine Seamgas Operation in Queensland. Gas wells are drilled up to 4,500 feet into the coal seams up to five years before mining. A processing plant on site dries and compresses the gas before it goes into the Queensland State Gas pipeline. In New South Wales, a 94 megawatt power plant operates on methane from coal seams.
CBM is an attractive energy source, since coal is the most abundant fossil fuel in the United States and lies under about 13% of the land in the lower 48 states. The US Energy Information Administration conservatively estimates that there are about 20 trillion cubic feet of economically recoverable coalbed gas, but some experts put that figure over 100 trillion.
CBM is also easier to tap than typical natural gas reserves. Natural gas usually comes from pockets 1,000 to 20,000 feet below ground. Since coal seams are closer to the surface, most of the methane is found at depths shallower than 5,000 feet. And, since coal seams have been well mapped, exploration costs aren't as high.

AMERICA'S CBM RESERVES

Ninety percent of America's CBM comes from the Rocky Mountain region. Much of that came from the San Juan Basin in Colorado and New Mexico in the past. However, it has been surpassed by Wyoming's Powder River Basin, where the coal is so close to the surface and the seams so thick that drilling can be done with small truck mounted rigs, which produce smaller footprints than traditional natural gas wells. There are over 15,000 producing CBM wells in the Powder River area. Each of these wells produces about 60 million cubic feet and cost less than other gas wells since they are only 330 feet deep on average. Consequently, it only takes about a week to complete a CBM well.
But, the East is also cashing in on CBM. Virginia produces about 85 million cubic feet a year, which is only a fraction of what Wyoming produces. However, the coal seams produce more methane per ton of coal. The wells are also deeper and the coal seams may only be a few feet thick. Since it sits astride the natural gas pipelines that go from Texas and Louisiana to the population centers of the northeast, much of the gas is easily moved into the interstate marketplace.

CBM'S FUTURE

Unlike many fossil fuels, America's CBM reserves are growing thanks to new technology. Coal produces methane as heat, pressure, and even bacteria act upon it. In fact, scientists are looking at injecting bacteria into the coal seams that will eat the coal and produce more methane from wells where production is declining. This may also make coal seams that aren't economic to mine potential producers of methane. Another possibility is to pump carbon dioxide and nitrogen into the wells. The coal will bond with the nitrogen and carbon dioxide and release its methane. At the same time, this offers an opportunity to sequester carbon dioxide, which is a goal of the Obama Administration.
Although the Obama Administration will undoubtedly hurt the coal industry, the industry at least has an opportunity to take advantage of the new direction in energy. As energy prices go up and the demand for domestic energy grows, the future of this hazardous gas, that coal miners tried to get rid of, will only grow brighter.