B-SPECIAL STUDIES AND ANALYSIS-NOT R&D PURSUANT OT THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION 6.302-1(d)(2), THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, FEDERAL ENERGY TECHNOLOGY CENTER, HEREBY ISSUES AN ADVANCE NOTICE THAT IT INTENDS TO AWARD A PURCHASE ORDER TO THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN, BUREAU OF ECONOMIC GEOLOGY FOR THE FOLLOWING WORK. THE MIDLAND BASIN, A SUBBASIN WITHIN THE PERMIAN BASIN OF WEST TEXAS AND EASTERN NEW MEXICO, CONTAINS EXTENSIVE DEPOSITS OF BEDDED SALT. THE SALT IS CURRENTLY BEING SOLUTION MINED FOR BRINE AND CONTAINS ABUNDANT SALT CAVERNS. A PREVIOUS EFFORT BY THE BUREAU ("SALT CAVERN STUDIES -- REGIONAL MAP OF SALT THICKNESS IN THE MIDLAND BASIN") DEMONSTRATED THE UTILITY OF THICKNESS MAPS AND RELATED INFORMATION USEFUL FOR IDENTIFYING SALT OCCURRENCES MOST SUITABLE FOR CAVERN UTILIZATION IN THE MIDLAND BASIN, TEXAS. IT ALSO DELINEATED THE BASIC TYPES OF GEOLOGIC INFORMATION NEEDED TO DESCRIBE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF SALT THAT ARE MOST RELEVANT TO CAVERN STORAGE AND DISPOSAL. THE CURRENT EFFORT WILL BUILDUPON THE PREVIOUS WORK BY PROVIDING ACCURATE WELL LOCATION DATA AND INCLUDING MUCH MORE INFORMATION ON THE QUALITY OF SALT FOR CAVERN USAGE RATHER THAN SALT THICKNESS DATA ONLY. ADDITIONAL AND MORE DETAILED MAPS AND RELATED INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO BEDDED SALT WILL BE OF INTEREST TO BOTH INDUSTRIAL OPERATORS AND TO GOVERNMENT REGULATORS. IN PARTICULAR, THE OBJECTIVES ARE TO: (1) CREATE AND COMPILE DETAILED MAPS AND CROSS SECTIONS DOCUMENTING THE REGIONAL EXTENT, GEOMETRY, AND QUALITY OF SALT RESOURCES SUITABLE FOR CAVERN DEVELOPMENT IN THE MIDLAND BASIN OF TEXAS; (2) IDENTIFY GEOLOGIC FACTORS THAT MAKE SPECIFIC SITES MORE OR LESS SUITABLE FOR CAVERN DEVELOPMENT; AND (3) DELINEATE GEOLOGIC FEATURES OF BEDDED SALT THAT ARE OF GREATEST SIGNIFICANCE TO SOLUTION MINING SIMULATION AND GEOTECHNICAL MODELING IN SUPPORT OF ENGINEERING DESIGN. THIS ACTION IS TAKEN UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF 41 U.S.C. 253(C)(1).

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