Senator John Hoeven has highlighted North Dakota’s progress in clean coal technologies, emphasizing the state’s role in advancing carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies. His remarks followed President-elect Donald Trump’s comments on clean coal’s significance in achieving energy dominance for the United States.
Hoeven has been working for 15 years to promote North Dakota’s leadership in CCUS. His efforts include establishing legal, tax, and regulatory frameworks to support these technologies. Notably, North Dakota became the first state to receive regulatory primacy for Class VI wells, ensuring safe CO2 storage underground.
The senator also secured a Department of Energy demonstration grant for Project Tundra. This initiative aims to enable the Milton R. Young power plant to capture and store four million metric tons of CO2 annually. Additionally, Basin’s Dakota Gasification synfuels plant operates as the largest coal-based carbon capture project globally, capturing up to 2.25 million metric tons of CO2 each year.
Hoeven stated his intention to collaborate with President Trump: “I look forward to working with President Trump to take off the handcuffs and empower producers to develop the latest, greatest technology to produce more energy with better environmental stewardship.” He emphasized that this collaboration is about “unleashing our nation’s vast coal reserves – one of our country’s most important strategic assets.”
He further noted: “By leveraging technology and unlocking clean coal’s full potential, we’ll be able to increase the supply of affordable, reliable electricity and bring down prices for American families and businesses.” Hoeven concluded by asserting that “North Dakota is leading the way in clean coal technologies,” which will contribute significantly to making America energy secure and dominant.
