CALGARY, AB (February 22, 2024) NGIF Accelerator is pleased to report the successful completion of the testing of Marathon Compression’s KL8 Instrument Air-Power Unit (KL8), which aims to reduce emissions from fuel gas-venting pneumatic equipment. Marathon Compression is an Emissions Testing Centre (ETC) program user to validate their technology. The ETC program is operated by the NGIF Accelerator.
Founded in 2014, Marathon Compression is a Calgary-based provider of custom solutions for natural gas compression and instrument air and power. Their solutions include new equipment design, surplus equipment sourcing and retrofit, project management, engineering consulting, and compression application support.
Pneumatic devices powered by fuel gas are commonly used in upstream wellsite facilities, such as liquid level controllers and back pressure controllers. Despite their cost-effectiveness and ease of operation, these systems emit methane, and current regulations require operators to move to zero-emission controls on all new wells.
In this project, the KL8 Air-Power unit (KL8) from Marathon Compression Corp. was tested at the NGIF Emissions Testing Centre (ETC) program field host site, jointly owned by Tourmaline Oil Corp. (Tourmaline) and Perpetual Energy (Perpetual) to evaluate the compressor’s reliability, emission reduction potential, and ability to operate using unprocessed fuel gas under field operating conditions.
Over the eight months of operation from April to November 2022, a total volume of 23,554.6 m3 of air was generated and used to operate pneumatic instruments. The engine has achieved a 99.1% runtime by running for over 5800 hours with no major mechanical failures. During this field trial, the air compressor eliminated 428 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions. The KL8 is still installed in the field and remains, to this day, in full-time operation with Tourmaline.
Image: Marathon Compression’s KL8 Air-Power Unit.
Through the NGIF Accelerator and its ETC program, Marathon Compression validated the emissions reduction measurements for their field unit, ensuring accurate and reliable results.
The ETC program is a plug-and-play testing platform for cleantech startups to validate their emissions-reduction solutions in both a laboratory-simulated and live operating test environment.
“Together with our partners, Perpetual Energy, Tourmaline, Natural Resources Canada, and the University of Calgary, we have created an unprecedented opportunity with this program for substantial reductions in methane emissions,” said John Adams, President and CEO of NGIF Accelerator. “Marathon Compression was able to leverage our program and create results that can be shared with future customers and potential investors.”
Glenn Schuster, CEO of Marathon Compression, notes, “Working with NGIF and Tourmaline has been a wonderful experience, and I am very grateful for their leadership and support of innovation within the oil and gas industry in Canada.”
“Canadians want and need the affordable, reliable, clean energy service offering they have come to expect from the natural gas industry. When we created NGIF, it was our vision to bring the entire natural gas value chain together to support cleantech development that enhances environmental and economic performance for the sector. I am glad to see our vision in action as its Accelerator program continues to validate technologies like Marathon Compression’s KL8 unit,” said Timothy M. Egan, President and CEO, Canadian Gas Association and Chair, NGIF Capital Corporation.
The public-facing reports from the Emissions Testing Centre program users are accessible via www.cerinprojects.ca.
About the Emissions Testing Centre Program
The ETC Program is a collaborative industry, government, and academia initiative headed by the NGIF Accelerator, providing startups with a dedicated space to develop, test, and field-validate technologies to measure, monitor, and reduce methane emissions. The program is unique by providing technology innovators with free-to-test access to support a rapid scale-up of technologies from concept to commercial-ready deployment. The ETC lab at the University of Calgary provides capabilities to test and de-risk technologies in a controlled environment, complemented by live field trials at the West Wolf Lake Gas Plant (jointly owned by Tourmaline Oil Corp. and Perpetual Energy) along with other Tourmaline assets.
About NGIF Accelerator
NGIF Accelerator is the not-for-profit arm of NGIF Capital and operates all technology and innovation programs. The NGIF Accelerator mandate is to de-risk and accelerate technology development by supporting startups through their pilot projects, field trials, and industry validation. It will coordinate with federal and provincial governments to co-fund projects to advance market commercialization. NGIF Accelerator currently operates the Industry Grants program and the Emissions Testing Centre program.
About Marathon Compression
Founded in 2014, Marathon Compression is a provider of innovative solutions for natural gas compression and instrument air and power. A proven creative solutions provider that delivers comprehensive design and engineering services, working collaboratively with clients to supply compression equipment to the oil and gas industry.
About Canadian Gas Association
The Canadian Gas Association (CGA) is the voice of Canada’s gaseous energy delivery industry, including natural gas, renewable natural gas (RNG), and hydrogen. CGA membership includes energy distribution and transmission companies, equipment manufacturers, and suppliers of goods and services to the industry.
Media Information:
John Adams
President and CEO, NGIF Accelerator
President and CEO, NGIF Capital Corporation
(613)-748-0057
jadams@ngif.ca
Ayoola Ajibare Ibironke
Communications Coordinator, NGIF Capital Corporation
(403)-389-2212
aajibare@ngif.ca
