EPA has issued the first permits in Texas for geologic storage of carbon dioxide.
On Monday, the agency’s Region 6 office announced it has issued final Class VI permits to a Occidental Petroleum subsidiary to build and operate three CO2 injection wells, which will send the greenhouse gas more than 4,000 feet underground.
“Oxy Low Carbon Ventures has demonstrated their ability and intention to operate these wells responsibly while creating jobs and supporting the Texas economy,” Scott Mason, administrator of EPA’s South Central Region, said in a news release.
The Stratos facility, a direct air capture plant in Texas’ energy-rich Permian Basin that Occidental has pursued for years, will provide CO2 for the wells. The facility, which will remove CO2 from the atmosphere, is on track to start up this year.
