National Science Foundation grants $1M to Permian Energy Development Lab
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has provided $1 million in grant funding over a two-year period to the new Permian Energy Development Lab, a two-state consortium of colleges, universities and national laboratories in Texas and New Mexico. Launched in March, the Lab aims to advance energy research and deployment, educate the next generation of energy professionals and support energy-intensive communities and natural resources.
The NSF funding will accelerate those efforts and will be shared among Lab partners including Midland College, Odessa College, University of Texas Permian Basin, University of Texas Austin, University of Texas El Paso, Texas A&M University, U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation and GTI Energy.
Midland College said its role in the project “will be to develop and provide instructional credit programs and industry-based credential continuing education programs to promote job attainment and enhancement for energy professionals in the Permian Basin.”
MC said the $1 million in NSF grant funding is the first step toward a possible 10-year, $160 million NSF investment.
“NSF is seeding the future for in-place innovation in communities and growing their regional economies through research and partnerships,” NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said. “This will unleash ideas, talent, pathways and resources to create vibrant innovation ecosystems all across our nation.”
