From the State of Wyoming – In light of the economic impacts of COVID-19, Governor Gordon created the Energy Rebound Program (ERP) to assist Wyoming’s economic recovery and boost employment in the oil and gas sector.
The program will utilize up to $15 million in CARES Act funding to provide business relief targeted towards drilled, but uncompleted oil and gas wells (DUCs), wells that were unable to be re-completed, and plugging and abandonment (P&A) projects which could not be finished due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Operators may apply to be reimbursed for work done on completions, recompletions, workovers or plugging and abandonments between the date of approval and December 30, 2020, up to $500,000 per project.
Download the application here.
Application updated 11/17 at 3:00 PM! Please ensure you submit the most recent version.
Applications will be accepted starting at 10 am on Wednesday November 18 until 10 am on November 23.
Applications submitted before or after this timeframe will not be accepted.
For more information, please register for a Q&A webinar:
8 a.m. Tuesday, November 17 [Watch the Recording Here]
8 a.m. Thursday, November 19 [Register Here]
About the Program
Business Eligibility
To be eligible for the Energy Rebound Program, a company must:
Have been established on or before any applicable COVID-19 health orders
Had at least one full time employee (working more than 30 hours per week) as of March 13, 2020
As a result of COVID-19, have been unable to do at least one of the following:
Complete a drilled well the company owns or operates
Perform a recompletion or workover of a well the company owns or operates
Perform the plugging and abandonment of a well the company owns or operates
Project Eligibility
To be eligible for the Energy Rebound Program, a project must fit into of the following categories:
The completion of a drilled well in the Wyoming, that was not performed because of the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency; or
The re-completion or workover of a well in Wyoming that was not performed because of the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency; or
The plugging and abandoning of an idle well, including surface reclamation, in Wyoming that was not performed because of the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency.
Award Amount
For each project, awards will be equal to the less of:
The estimated total cost of the proposed project
The estimated total amount that can be expended toward the completion of the project by December 30
$500,000
Application Process
To submit an application, please download the PDF application from this page. Complete and sign the application, then submit via email to wbc.erp@wyo.gov after 10 am on Wednesday, November 18th and before 10 am on Monday, Nov. 23. Businesses should submit one application that includes all the projects for which they apply.
Applications will be reviewed for completeness, accuracy, eligibility, and economic impact by state agency staff. Award decisions will be made on a project by project basis (as opposed to an application by application basis) after the closing date. You will be notified about the decision on your projects at that time.
Please be attentive to email, phone calls, text messages and voicemail during the application and review period, as staff may contact you as needed.
Please also be aware that upon signature of the application, you agree to the terms listed in the application. However, submitting an application does not guarantee that you will receive funds. Additionally, neither submitting an application nor receiving an ERP award exempts you from any rules, regulations, or permitting that is required for the project.
Prioritization Criteria
Priority will be given to projects that provide the greatest immediate economic and employment benefit to Wyoming. Other factors include, but are not limited to, estimated time of start and completion of the project; completeness of the application; estimated amount of increased production of oil and gas; and ability to commence P&A projects in a timely manner. Should the reviewing team determine projects are equal in economic benefits, the date of application will be used as a tie-breaker.
Reimbursements for Project Costs
If you are awarded an Energy Rebound Program stipend, you may invoice the Wyoming Business Council for any work that is done after the date of award approval and before December 30, 2020 on the project(s) for which the stipend is awarded, up to the total award amount. The entirety of the project does not have to be completed before December, just the work you are invoicing for. Invoices will be accepted through January 30, 2020. Invoices for eligible expenses will be paid before March 30, 2020.
For more details, check out Program Rules.
Have Questions? Check out our FAQ.
For questions not answered by the FAQ, please email wbc.erp@wyo.gov, or call Sarah Fitz-Gerald at 307-777-6319 or Kim Rightmer at 307-577-6012.
