Oil well near Greenbrier
DAMASCUS, Ark. (KTHV) -- U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman visited Faulkner County Friday to tour Southwestern Energy's natural gas operations near Greenbrier.
During the visit, Poneman highlighted President Barack Obama's State of the Union address last week, where the President laid out a blueprint for an American economy built to last.
"Safe, responsible development of America's natural gas resources is a major priority for the country and Arkansas is helping lead the way," Poneman said.
A newer (and less populated) compressed natural gas station on Highway 65 near Damascus doesn't serve as many customers as your typical gas station, but Jack Bergeron, senior V.P. for the Fayetteville Shale division of Southwestern Energy, says that could soon change if the nation follows President Obama's plan outlined in last week's State of the Union address.
"It is probably America's strongest natural resource. It's very clean burning, it's very efficient. It's something we ought to take advantage of."
Bergeron says America is blessed with the resource of natural gas. "We are the world's largest supplier of natural gas. We at Southwestern are very proud we are producing 3 percent of America's natural gas right now."
One well pad on Friday's tour was drilled in 2009 and is home to five wells. It's one of thousands in the Fayetteville Shale play.
Bergeron says, "Whereas this field seven years ago, or eight years ago did not exist, it's now gone from nothing to over 1.9 billion cubic feet of gas a day."
The Southwestern Energy fleet uses the CNG fuel, and it's a fuel that takes less money out of your wallet than gasoline. Bergeron says the tour with D.C. Official highlights what Arkansas is doing right, for the future of our nation's energy and employment right here at home.
"He [Poneman] was very pleased with the fact that we've created jobs in the oil and gas industry. We have 1,200 employees that were not here. We opened the office in 2005 with 12. We're over 1,200 right now in the state, mostly Arkansas."
We've attached the President Obama's State of the Union speech here.