John Harju

Biography

John A. Harju is the Vice President for Strategic Partnerships at the EERC, where he leads efforts to build and grow dynamic working relationships with industry, government, and research entities globally in support of the EERC’s mission to provide practical, pioneering solutions to the world’s energy and environmental challenges. He represents the EERC regionally, nationally, and internationally in advancing its core research priorities: coal utilization and emissions, carbon management, oil and gas, alternative fuels and renewable energy, and energy–water. In addition, he is an Adjunct Lecturer in the Department of Petroleum Engineering at UND. Mr. Harju’s principal areas of interest and expertise include carbon sequestration, enhanced oil recovery, unconventional oil and gas development, waste management, geochemistry, technology development, hydrology, and analytical chemistry, especially as applied to the upstream oil and gas industry.

Prior to his current position, Mr. Harju was the Associate Director for Research at the EERC. Before joining the EERC, he was Vice President of Crystal Solutions, LLC, a firm involved in commercial E&P produced water management, regulatory permitting and compliance, and environmental impact monitoring and analysis. He worked for Gas Research Institute (now Gas Technology Institute) as Principal Scientist in Produced Water Management and as Program Team Leader for Soil, Water, and Waste. He also worked at the EERC from 1989 to 1996 in various capacities.

Mr. Harju is a graduate of UND’s Geology Program and holds an M.Eng. degree in Petroleum Engineering. In 2018, he was appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Energy to serve on the National Coal Council. He was appointed to the National Petroleum Council in 2010. He also served on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Unconventional Resources Technology Advisory Committee (URTAC) from 2012 to 2014. Mr. Harju was appointed to the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) in 2010, serving on the Energy Resources, Research, and Technology Committee, and on IOGCC’s Carbon Capture and Geological Storage Task Force. Since 2014, Mr. Harju has served on the Board of Governors of Mainstream Investors, LLC. In addition, he is a member of the Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists. He has authored or coauthored more than 100 professional publications and nearly 300 technical presentations.