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GasTechno Says Methane-To-Methanol Plant Launch A Success

WALLOON LAKE (WWJ) -- Gas Technologies LLC last week announced a successful launch of its first portable Portable Mini-GTL production plant in the field.

Installed on an active oil field in Kalkaska County, GasTechno said the plant is now fully operational and will serve as a demonstration site for the company's existing and future customers.

Most oil wells produce natural gas as well. But where there is no pipeline to get the gas to market, oil drillers usually simply burn that gas off, a process called flaring. There's a push now by governments around the world to minimize this wasteful practice, and turn that gas into useful products. GasTechno officials say their Mini-GTL (gas to liquids) plant can be a big part of the solution to this problem.

Full production testing started Monday, Aug. 19 and will continue at this site until the end of November, when the plant will be moved to its permanent customer location outside Dallas, Texas. This field demonstration plant will provide the design and engineering data for the customer's new planned $25 million commercial plant located on its stranded gas field in the Barnett Shale formation.

The launch represents the world's first and only single-step gas-to-liquids production capability, a patented process that received the recent No. 1 ranking by patent quality among 100 companies in Michigan by Crain's Detroit Business. The new and improved process enables the conversion and monetization of flared or stranded natural gas, biogas, coal mine methane, and landfill gas at a mini-scale adaptable to 80 percent of the global methane reduction market.

"This successful field installation is a significant milestone for the company and its Early Adopter customers," said GasTechno CEO Walter Breidenstein. "While we have previously proven and substantially improved our capabilities with the Mobile Trailer pilot plant testing started in November 2010, this field validation is essential to now launch the commercialization of our technology. With the only proven single-step process in the world, we are excited about our opportunity to become the global leader in a vast, underserved market."

This new demonstration plant was the result of its "Early Adopter Program" announced in May of 2012, which required a $2 million to $3 million investment in the company's flagship "Mini-GTL" unit, designed to produce 43 barrels a day of GasTechno chemicals -- the largest production capacity at a fraction of the cost compared with existing competitors offering gas-to-liquid systems. In late 2012, GTL modified the program to accommodate several early adopters who requested a smaller system at a lower cost for demonstration purposes. This newest system -- the "Portable Mini-GTL" plant -- was engineered to produce 4 barrels a day, at a lower investment level of $800,000 to deploy in the field.

"Our small, dedicated team has worked very hard since July 2010 to overcome significant technical and financial hurdles," Evan Visser, the company's CTO, said. "Our Mobile Trailer pilot plant testing led us to breakthrough innovation in 2012 with the Portable Mini-GTL proprietary design and process that totally automated the small plant. Over 60 different electronic devices make this 25-foot enclosed plant fully operational and code compliant at the field site, a first of its kind in the industry. There is no competitor in the marketplace that comes close to our compact design."

For more information on the latest Portable Mini-GTL plant or the Mini-GTL plant opportunities, visit www.gastechno.com.

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