Rebellion Energy Solutions’ Orphan-Well Plugging Project Becomes First-of-Its-Kind Methane-Abatement Project to Be Listed by American Carbon Registry

Project Generates Durable, Verifiable Carbon-Offset Credits Under New ACR Framework

Plugging of Methane-Emitting Orphan Wells in Historic Oklahoma Oilfield
Abates Approximately 74,000 Metric Tons CO₂e

Project Sets New Standard for Regenerative Agriculture and Biodiversity Restoration
On Legacy Oil-and-Gas Well Sites

Rebellion’s Heartland Methane Abatement & Land Restoration Project Ties
To Key UN Sustainable Development Goals and Mitigates Legacy Impact for Landowners

TULSA, Okla., June 16, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — A Rebellion Energy Solutions methane-abatement and land-restoration project on June 8 became the first orphan oil-and-gas well plugging project to be listed by the American Carbon Registry. Rebellion’s project, for which it completed operations last month, is designed to generate durable, verifiable carbon-offset credits under ACR’s recently finalized methodology.

Rebellion’s Heartland Methane Abatement and Land Restoration Project immediately and permanently abates approximately 74,000 metric tons CO₂e as a result of plugging methane-emitting orphan wells in a historic Oklahoma oilfield. That volume of CO₂e abated in this project is equivalent to approximately 8.3 million gallons of gasoline consumed, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s greenhouse gas equivalencies calculator. The project also ties to key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and mitigates legacy impacts for landowners and surrounding communities.

Rebellion designed its Heartland Project to meet or exceed standards in the American Carbon Registry’s recently finalized methodology for creating carbon credits from the reduction in methane emissions by plugging orphan oil and gas wells. Rebellion’s business model for methane-abatement and land-restoration projects provides a sustainable platform for project funding through sales of durable, verifiable carbon-offset credits generated under the ACR framework.

“Rebellion’s Heartland Methane Abatement and Land Restoration Project was ideally positioned to become the first-of-its-kind methane-abatement project listed by the American Carbon Registry,” says Staci Taruscio, chief executive officer of Rebellion Energy Solutions. “We developed and completed operations of this project with the American Carbon Registry framework in mind – having participated in its development and observed the public comment and scientific peer review stages over the last two years.”

“We are passionate about creating structures that are inclusive of the oil-and-gas industry while driving discipline and responsibility. By employing both the economic incentive of carbon markets and oil-and-gas expertise, the ACR framework will lead to the permanent clean-up of legacy wells that otherwise would not be addressed. The result is a sustainable platform for environmental benefit, investment, job creation – and a catalyst for modernized regulatory policy – I’m proud to be a part of,” Taruscio says.

The wells plugged in Rebellion’s Heartland Project are more than 40 years old and have been unattended for more than a decade – with no ongoing maintenance or plugging activity to responsibly complete the lifecycle of the well. Rebellion assumed ownership of the wells and privately funded the project to plug the wells; no State or Federal funds were utilized. Carbon credits can help get wells plugged and permanently halt decades of methane emissions, providing an incentive to target the worst offenders.

Land Restoration

Rebellion’s Heartland Project land restoration centers on regenerative agriculture practices – creating customized ecological hotspots designed to return the sites to tallgrass prairie habitat that foster biodiversity and ecosystem resilience.

Rebellion initiated the ecological restoration of the former gas-well sites by planting more than 5 million seeds of 21 native forbs and grass species, as well 4,000 native plant plugs. The aim is to recreate productive, ecological hotspots to benefit wildlife species of concern, including the endangered monarch butterfly that migrate commonly through this area and are reliant on several native milkweed plants and the near threatened Northern Bobwhite Quail which utilize the native grasses in this area for nesting habitat. Rebellion is continuing the land restoration process with post-monitoring and data collection.

“Rebellion has set the gold standard in orphan-well plugging and land remediation by building verified co-benefits to landowners and the community,” says Eric Perner, chief operating officer. “By design, we are restoring productive, grazeable lands and drought-resilient native wildlife habitat – with optimal nature-based carbon storage and drawdown. And we are underscoring our commitment to sustainable co-benefits by utilizing a third-party land-management-impact program to track success.”

About the Land

Rebellion’s Heartland Project targeted well sites on two cattle-grazing and bluestem prairie-grass ranches in Oklahoma. These lands have been home over many decades to oil and gas wells that were developed by entities that owned the rights to the minerals below the surface. Among what is left today from that development are unplugged orphan oil and gas wells, which may appear as pipes jutting out of the ground or even just a hole in the ground. While the entities that developed the wells no longer exist, the families and the cattle remain, along with what – prior to Rebellion’s Heartland Project – were unknown methane emissions, damaged land, surface safety hazards and potential harm to water sources and ecosystems.

Additional Data for Interested Parties

Rebellion has created a Heartland Project data room to provide a robust level of technical information to parties interested in purchasing the carbon-offset credits. Interested parties may contact Rebellion at [email protected].

About Rebellion Energy Solutions https://rebellionenergy.com

Rebellion Energy Solutions, a portfolio company of Grey Rock Investment Partners, is headquartered in Tulsa, Okla. Rebellion is a woman-led business with a multi-disciplinary team of experts committed to creating sustainable solutions through oilfield cleanup and environmental justice in a comprehensive effort to restore the land, reduce harmful carbon emissions, and create taxable revenue streams for communities.

About Grey Rock Investment Partners https://www.grey-rock.com/

Grey Rock Investment Partners is a private equity firm with more than $1.3 billion in asset value across its private equity fund platform. Grey Rock invests across the energy value chain with private equity funds focusing on investments in natural resources, carbon capture, industrial electrification, and reduction of methane emissions.

Forward-Looking Statement

Certain statements in this article may constitute “forward-looking statements.” The forward-looking statements in the article reflect the management team’s best judgment at the time they are made, but all such statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the statements herein. Estimates of future performance reflect various assumptions that may or may not prove accurate, as well as the exercise of a substantial degree of judgment by the management team as to the scope and presentation of such information. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements that may be contained herein. The company and management team do not intend to, and do not undertake any obligation to, update the forward-looking statements contained herein.

For more information:
Kerry Malone, [email protected], 918-625-4958
Rachely Hernandez-Salazar, [email protected], 918-600-5647

SOURCE Rebellion Energy