Oil giant ExxonMobil is pursuing a pilot project to use flare gas from wells in North Dakota to power Bitcoin mining devices, Bloomberg reports citing its own sources.
The startup Crusoe Energy Systems has become a partner of the company. According to the company, it receives excess associated petroleum gas (APG) that would otherwise be flared due to lack of pipeline capacity.
This gas is now used to power modular units that mine cryptocurrencies and that are located directly next to wells in the Bakken shale field.
The project started in January 2021 and the parties expanded its scope in July. Within its framework, Crusoe plants consume up to 0.5 million m3 of gas per month.
ExxonMobil plans to implement similar pilots in Alaska, Nigeria, shale basins in Argentina, Guyana and Germany.
