Oil industry seeks loan guarantees

The Associated Press

State government should guarantee loans and bonds for companies willing to make the investments for enhanced oil recovery projects in Wyoming, according to industry representatives and observers.

Those people also endorse Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal’s plan to establish an enhanced oil recovery task force, and they would like to see renewed support for the University of Wyoming’s nearly dormant Enhanced Oil Recovery Institute.

The Legislature’s Joint Minerals, Business, and Economic Development Interim Committee was told recently that ever-improving methods of oil extraction have the potential to revive, or at least extend the life of, Wyoming’s petroleum industry for decades. Dag Nummedal, director of the University of Wyoming’s Institute for Energy Research, said market risks are the main barrier preventing most oil companies from pursuing enhanced oil recovery techniques in Wyoming.

As a result, only large companies have thus far tried any major recovery projects in the state, he said.