Utonomy expands to the US with $150K project with GTI Energy

Utonomy, the developer of patented hardware and AI technology that optimises pressure in the gas network, has been awarded a $150K contract by US-based GTI Energy to assess the potential of its technology to reduce methane emissions across North American utility networks.

The project with GTI Energy will see Utonomy adapt its technology to control US gas regulator types and carry out testing at a flow laboratory in North America. This follows a successful technical review and evaluation of the Utonomy Smart Regulator by GTI Energy last year. Assuming the flow laboratory tests are successful, the next phase of the project will be North American utility field trials.

Utonomy’s technology will enable the remote control and monitoring of US gas network regulators and has the capability to reduce methane leakage from gas networks. This is now a major legislative agenda issue across the US following the publication of its Methane Emissions and Reduction Plan in November 2021. 

Significant parts of the estimated 2.3 million miles of gas distribution pipelines in cities and towns throughout the United States are still metallic with the potential for leakage. The need to find cost-effective solutions to reduce methane emissions is now imperative, as Dennis Jarnecke, Research & Development Director at GTI Energy. explains:

“Innovation and new technologies that can detect and reduce methane emissions will help to ensure we can harness the promise of natural gas as a source to deliver low-cost, low-carbon energy to communities worldwide

“GTI Energy brings partners together to find the optimal tools and insights for gas operations to maintain a safe and reliable infrastructure. Connecting Utonomy with funding from Operations Technology Development (OTD), a not-for-profit collaborative organization that develops advanced technologies for the natural gas industry, will support validation of this technology that offers the potential to more effectively deliver energy throughout the industries piping infrastructure.

Utonomy’s technology has proven capabilities in reducing methane emissions, and we are excited to see the outcome of the laboratory testing and how it could be applied to the North American pipeline system.”

For Utonomy, the contract with GTI Energy is a major step in demonstrating the international potential for its technology, which has achieved UK success through a major partnership with gas distribution network SGN to install its system at 270 governor stations across the south of England, as CEO Adam Kingdon explains:

“We are really excited to be working on this project with GTI Energy. As the global warming potential of methane is 84 times that of CO2 over a twenty-year period, it is clear that immediate action needs to be taken to reduce emissions.

“The most cost-effective way of doing this is by optimising the network’s pressure. As leakage is proportional to pressure, a 20% drop in average pressure leads to a 20% reduction in leakage. Using smart, AI-based solutions will provide network operators with cost-effective tools to target leakage reduction, helping support national and international emissions reduction targets.”

For more information, visit https://utonomy.co.uk