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The Carbon Corner - Issue #7

Published over 1 year ago • 4 min read

The Carbon Corner - Issue #7

Welcome to our seventh week of The Carbon Corner!

Today we are going to address a few new projects and partnerships that have popped up in the space.

While many things are still in the preliminary stages, you can count on us to keep you up to do date on all changes and happenings in the CCS sphere.

New Hydrogen Paired CCS Project coming to Gulf Coast

Dastur International, Inc., Dastur Energy Inc., and Air Liquide were recently awarded a US DOE funded FEED study project, which includes the design and engineering of an industrial sized carbon capture plant on the US Gulf Coast.

The project will be completed over the span of 18 months and will cost nearly $7.5 million. The goal is to capture 0.9 mtpa of CO2 with an efficiency rate of at least 95%.

This project is a part of the 1-1-1 Hydrogen Energy Earthshot program, an initiative by DOE that is striving to reduce the cost of clean hydrogen by 80% over the next decade.

As mentioned by Atanu Mukherjiee, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dastur, “Decarbonization of the hard-to-abate industrial world and generation of clean energy carriers, like hydrogen, is key to a net-zero future, and this project will be an important landmark in establishing the US’s leadership in this area.”

The consistent theme emerging recently has been CCS projects paired with hydrogen production. Midstream companies in the southern US, like Williams, seem to be taking pre-eminent roles in this space.

Carbon Capture Costs Threaten Power Plant Project in Louisiana

Cleco recently proposed a transformation for one of their central Louisiana power plants to be used as a carbon capture facility.

This project, known as “Project Diamond Vault” has brought to light budget impacts of carbon capture systems. In a recently filed state report, Cleco indicated that by implementing the CCS facility plans, that electricity produced for customers would be reduced by 30%. The water use necessary would also increase by 55%, based on studies of similar plants.

These changes were further confirmed in a study by Carnegie Institution for Science at Standford that found CCS increased water use by 25% to 200%. Clearly, these costs must be weighted against the benefits of the system. Further, the costs will weigh on Cleco’s decision to proceed with Project Diamond Vault.

We hope to share more information with you as to the status of this project in coming months, as it is a key indicator of public tolerance for CCS installations driving more expensive energy production.

NETL Partnership Drives Toward Lower Cost CCS

While we are talking about the financial side of carbon capture and sequestration, let’s take time to address the new partnership between Schlumberger and RTI International. These tech companies have paired up to create a NETL supported technology that can help lower the cost of CO2 capture.

In preliminary testing, the companies reported that their engineered non-aqueous solvent (NAS) technology was able to reduce the energy needed to remove CO2 by as much as 40%, in comparison to conventional aqueous solvent capture systems. This curtailment of energy consumption could save meaningful money.

The DOE has set a performance goal of lowering the cost of electricity by 30% by 2030 and use of this technology would take significant steps towards reaching that objective.

The next steps for the Schlumberger and RTI partnership is to develop models that allow for fast design and process customizations, so that this new technology can be expanded and used across the market.

Texas Class VI Primacy to Benefit Wyoming Coal Industry?

Remember a few weeks ago when we talked about Texas seeking primacy over the EPA’s Class VI injection well-permitting process?

Well we aren’t the only ones that have this on our radar. Wyoming public radio recently published an article detailing how Texas’s decision can greatly impact the state.

The theory presented is that if more operators implement CCS in Texas, the state can use more coal because there will be a solution to decrease CO2 emissions from coal-fired generation plants.

Two key issues stand in the way of this proclamation: Texas actually receiving Class VI well primacy from the EPA and the successful application of CCS technology to coal plants. The latter has not been proven commercially viable yet, with several notable failures to launch.

That said, this highlights the interdependencies of the domestic energy sector, with coal mines in Wyoming waiting anxiously to see if CCS takes off in Texas!

Canadian Oil Sands CCS Mega-Project in the Works

Pathways Alliance, a group of Canada’s six largest oilsands companies, has begun preliminary work on creating a massive CCS facility near Cold Lake, Alta.

This facility would capture CO2 emissions from more than 20 oil sands facilities and deliver an estimated 10 million tonnes of emissions into the ground annually. The group is well on their way to a decision, with most pre-engineering work completed for the 400 km pipeline that will carry the captured C02.

If this proposals moves to construction, the first stage of the facility will cost around $16.5 billion. As of right now, Pathways Alliance is working on the financial and regulatory conditions, but we will keep you posted on their progress!


Come visit us at https://schaperintl.com to find out more about partnering with us to advance your site development.

Schaper Energy Consulting

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