Genie Energy announced that its subsidiary, Genie Oil Shale Mongolia (GOSM), has received authorization to work with the Petroleum Authority of Mongolia (PAM) to “explore and evaluate” oil shale resources in Central Mongolia. If the oil shale turns out to be commercially useful, Genie Energy may seek to enter an agreement to produce oil shale. Genie Energy is the first company to be granted sole rights to explore oil shale. The company began searching for oil shale in Mongolia last year.
According to the company’s CEO, Claude Pupkin, Genie Energy has already discovered high quality oil shale and is in the process of identifying where exactly to focus future efforts. Mongolia’s Vice Minister of Mining, O. Erdenebulgan, views oil shale production as a way to decrease dependence on energy imports. Michael Jonas, Executive Vice President of Genie Oil & Gas, believes that Mongolia can be a future exporter of the resource, which can be used to produce oil and gas.
(Edited from Business Wire)