(The Center Square) – The Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy has selected two primary contractors for the first phase of a revamped state program aimed at plugging and cleaning thousands of orphaned oil and gas wells scattered across the northern part of the state.
Conservation and Energy Secretary Dustin Davidson announced that Houston-based Garner Environmental Services, Inc. will oversee operations in the Monroe District, while Lemoine Disaster Recovery, LLC, headquartered in Lafayette, will manage the Shreveport District. Both firms were selected through a competitive Request for Qualification process.
Backed by at least $30 million in federal grant funding, the program will target the state’s densest concentrations of abandoned well sites. The two northern districts account for more than 4,200 of the approximately 6,400 documented orphaned well sites currently on Louisiana’s books…