Insights4 003

A Word from our CEO

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CCS works but settings must be right.

There is growing global awareness of the critical role carbon capture and storage must play to enable nations to meet their emissions reduction targets on time and at a reasonable cost. To enable the delivery of the hundreds of CCS projects that will be required over the next decade across the globe clear and stable regulatory processes must be in place.

This theme was underlined at the meeting of the Global CCS Institute held in Darwin this month.

Addressing that meeting, Australia’s Resources Minister Madeleine King said Australia had the ability to become a world leader in the emerging carbon capture industry, with large, stable geological formations for greenhouse gas storage.

And she highlighted international collaboration – such as the partnerships Australia already has with Japan, Singapore and the Republic of Korea – was critical on key policy, regulatory and technical matters to further enhance and progress the development of this essential technology.

Legal and regulatory regimes for Australian CCS projects have been in place for some time – both in Federal and Victorian waters offshore, and onshore in states such as South Australia, Queensland and Victoria. Western Australia has taken a project-specific approach that has enabled the world-leading Gorgon project to proceed, but has yet to develop an industry-wide approach.

More needs to be done to bed down these regulatory frameworks before industry can invest with confidence across multiple jurisdictions.

That was a central theme at the first meeting of CO2CRC’s CCS Project Regulatory Affairs Task Force held in mid-February.

The task force’s term of reference focus on several themes including:

  • Developing a plan for engagement with senior regulatory leaders , including by building a cadre of informed regulators with a growing understanding of scientific principles underpinning CCS.
  • Broadening CO2CRC’s scientific ‘thought leadership’ to build support for CCS technology.
  • Building better industry understanding of regulatory expectations and requirements.
  • Identifying any areas for improvement in current CCS project regulatory framework and where required, developing alternative approaches.

This will be an important focus for CO2CRC and our members in the months ahead, including during the current Parliamentary Inquiry into transboundary transportation of CO2.

Current global CCS projects are a fraction of those required to meet net zero targets while maintaining energy security and affordability. After decades of project development and operation around the world, the industry knows CCS works, but policy settings must be right to enable it to play its true role in the emissions reduction journey.

CO2CRC looks forward to working with industry, government, and the wider stakeholder community to achieve this. 

Dr Matthias Raab, CEO.

CO2CRC and CO2Tech Finalists in LETS Pitch Australia 2023

CO2CRC and CO2Tech are each one of eight finalists chosen by National Energy Resources Australia NERA to pitch proposals to a panel of industry judges and an audience from major operators, government and industry at AOG Energy’s Industry Supply Forum

The judges will select the three winners of the event, who will be invited to join Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade)’s Clean Energy Mission in Singapore.

Members of the public are invited to come down to AOG Energy at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre on Wednesday, 15 March, 3–4pm, to watch the live pitch event and help select the winner of the People’s Choice Award.

CO2CRC’s Dr Jai Kant Pandit will pitch on HyCaps, a modular and scalable hybrid process to capture CO2 efficiently. HyCaps combines solvent absorption and membrane separation in a single process, which exploits the advantages of both technologies to achieve efficient and low-cost carbon capture. The traditional packed columns used for absorption of CO2 and regeneration of solvent are replaced by HyCaps modules with a hollow fibre membrane.

The process involves the transfer of CO2 from the flue gas through the membrane, where it is chemically absorbed into a solvent. This takes advantage of the highly selective nature of solvent absorption technology and controlled flow regime of the membrane.

CO2Tech’s Dr Adeel Ghayur will speak about a new technology using biowastes and renewable CO2 to produce 100% renewable and recyclable materials named Lignik. It has the potential to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and can support emissions reduction in the hard to abate and construction sectors. The Lignik material is analogous to natural wood, and the technology is now ready for the construction of the world’s first hundred percent green house.

For more information see https://www.nera.org.au/LETs-Pitch-Australia-23

Carbon Removal

Work on Otway Stage 4 Commences

February saw operations start on CO2CRC’s Otway Stage 4 project which aims to enhance the effectiveness of CO2 geological storage through reducing the cost of reservoir and well surveillance and improving the characterisation of CO2 flow through porous media.

GroundWave, a Geelong-based drilling company, completing two 100m deep wells using their sonic drilling rig. These shallow wells, one for CO2 injection and one for monitoring will tell us more about how carbon dioxide behaves when it comes into contact with a fault in the subsurface. This part of the project is supported by Japanese research institute RITE, the CSIRO, Curtin University, the University of Adelaide and Geoscience Australia.

Underground geology is often faulted and folded so it is important to understand what will happen when stored carbon dioxide comes into contact with a fault. Will the fault enable buoyant carbon dioxide to move up and away from the storage area, or could it act as a barrier and trap the carbon dioxide? The research involves pumping approximately 10 tonnes of CO2 into the ground not far from CO2CRC’s Knowledge Hub near a strike-slip fault, 80m below the surface. The CO2 will be very carefully monitored as it moves through the subsurface using fibre for Distributed Strain Sensing (DSS) technology and 4D reverse Vertical Seismic Profile (VSP) in addition to standard pressure gauges.

Carbon Removal
save the date 2023

Interested in sponsoring?

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Site tours at 11am and 2pm. Presentations, children’s activities, free gourmet BBQ and morning tea.

Please wear long pants and a long sleeved top of natural materials and covered shoes.  Please call Shelly Murrell on 0458 462 063 for more information.

Energy Transition News

31/01/23  Deep emissions cuts drive CCUS to emerging economies – BP (pemedianetwork.com)
Investment in CCUS capacity could pivot sharply towards China, India and other emerging economies between 2035 and 2050 if the world acts to cut emissions in line with the Paris climate goals, according to BP’s latest Energy Outlook report.

6/02/23 Media Release: Federal Budget should focus on boosting new gas supply and emissions reductions | APPEA
APPEA’s 2023-24 Federal Budget submission, released today, calls for a national CCUS roadmap to provide clear policy direction, identify and progress priority hubs for low emissions projects and promote Australia as a regional carbon storage leader.

7/02/23 Chevron to spend on CCS for old Bight make good (ENB)
CHEVRON Australia has committed A$38 million to carbon capture and storage study in Australia with money going to an established project in Victoria and offshore CCS study in the Carnarvon Basin close to its existing Gorgon CCS plant.

9/02/23 Heidelberg Materials pioneers CCUS project – Quarry (quarrymagazine.com)
Heidelberg Materials has signed the EU Innovation Fund Grant Agreement for the company’s pioneering carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) project, ANRAV.

14/02/23 Study Finds Low Risk From Sequestered Carbon (spe.org)
Recently published research suggests that carbon dioxide stored underground will stay there for millions of years.

16/02/23 Breaking down where CCUS investment needs to flow | BusinessGreen Opinion
Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) is increasingly regarded as a key part of the global strategy for reaching net zero by 2050 and is set to play a vital role in mitigating the adverse effects.

22/02/23 Address to the Australia and Southeast Asia Global CCS Institute Forum | Minister for Resources
Minister King’s speech highlights need for greater industry efforts to advance Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage. Highlights the Federal Government committed $141 million over 10 years to implement a new Carbon Capture Technologies Program in the October Budget and Australia’s low emission partnership agreements with the Republic of Korea, Japan and Singapore, which include cooperation on Carbon capture.

21/02/23 Coal giant Glencore pushes for law change to prevent ‘legal challenges’ to carbon project – ABC News
Leaked briefing notes reveal major coal miner Glencore has been lobbying for legislation changes to prevent legal challenges to a controversial carbon capture and storage project in the Great Artesian Basin.

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