Oil & Gas Industry Veteran Greg Jenkins Joins Ciris Energy To Lead Commercial Expansion of Proprietary Natural Gas Generating Technology

CENTENNIAL, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Ciris Energy, Inc., a company dedicated to the development of cost-efficient conversion of coal to natural gas through natural means, announced that Greg Jenkins is joining the company as the new Chief Operating Officer.

Jenkins brings extensive experience from 30 years of leadership roles in the oil and gas industry. His primary focus will be the commercialization of the company's microbial coal to natural gas conversion technology that is currently undergoing late-stage testing in its first commercial scale project in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Previously, Ciris' In-situ Bioconversion (ISBC) technology has been shown in three separate pilot field studies to efficiently convert coal to natural gas using naturally occurring microbial communities. The ISBC technology generates natural gas from both new coal seams, as well as depleted CBM fields, by energizing a natural process where microbial communities synthesize natural gas from coal. Based on the company's pilot studies, the process cost-effectively yields greater amounts of methane than traditional methods and is environmentally friendly. The ISBC technology is covered by an extensive intellectual property portfolio of both US and foreign issued and pending patents.

“We are excited to have Greg join Ciris Energy”, said Jay Short, PhD, Chief Executive Officer at Ciris. “Greg's wide-ranging experience comes at a perfect time to take our new technologies to market with a shift to expanded commercial focus in the coming year.”

Jenkins' previous experience in the oil and gas industry has included the roles of Chief Executive Officer, President, Executive Vice President, and Chief Financial Officer of several corporations including Syntroleum Corporation, El Paso Corporation, Hadson Corporation, and Santa Fe Energy Company. Jenkins will oversee the operations of Ciris Energy in leveraging efficient technology to become a leading large-scale producer of natural gas.

About Ciris Energy, Inc.

Ciris Energy, Inc., a private company founded in 2007 and headquartered in Centennial, Colorado, USA, is focused on enhanced natural gas production from low rank coals worldwide. Ciris Energy uses scientific innovation to effectively harvest untapped energy resources that traditional methods leave behind. Ciris is developing two independent technologies to efficiently convert low-rank coals to natural gas. The first method, ISBC (In-situ Bioconversion process), is a natural process that activates indigenous microbes in coal seams. The second, ESBC (Ex-situ Bioconversion process), combines coal sizing and depolymerization technology with microbial bioconversion to generate methane and other chemicals from mined coal. Both methods reduce the cost of energy production and are environmentally friendly compared to traditional methods. By rejuvenating unproductive coal territories through proprietary technologies that stimulate and optimize natural occurring processes, Ciris Energy is leading the way to efficiently produce natural gas through clean and sustainable methods.