A word from the CEO
Growing recognition of role of CCS
Last week’s announcement that the Federal Government will issue 10 new permits for carbon capture and storage exploration is another sign of the growing recognition of CCS in achieving emissions reductions targets.
In announcing the new permits, Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King, acknowledged “the International Energy Agency, the CSIRO, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Australia’s Climate Change Authority all identify that carbon capture, utilisation and storage will be needed to support the net zero transition.”
However, the decision to restrict seismic on new exploration permits is baffling. Seismic is also critical for the identification of suitable CCS locations as it is for the ongoing monitoring of storage structures.
Limiting the use of seismic is like expecting modern medicine without x-rays.
Generally, we are placing too many obstacles on the road to net zero.
Instead of restricting the use of still essential technology, we should do more to develop alternate technologies that could enable us to move beyond current practice.
CO2CRC has done significant research with Curtin University and CSIRO on how we can provide high resolution reservoir monitoring – without the necessity for conventional seismic surveys over the half century lifetime of CCS projects. The technologies have been proven onshore at the Otway International Test Centre, and further advancements are part of CO2CRC’s future program. This is much needed, yet brilliant Australian innovation originating in our home country, where so many potential CCS projects are planned.
This exceptional innovation is coming out of Australia and means regulatory process can be streamlined and interaction with the marine environment and industries reduced.
While the new permit allocation is encouraging, the fact remains that current CCS projects around Australia are moving too slowly – often due to delays in granting environmental and other regulatory approvals.
Combined with delays in bringing renewable energy projects online, that means Australia’s chances of meeting our 2035 and 2050 emissions goals are becoming more challenging by the day.
Industry must also do its bit to restore momentum to the Australian CCS sector.
Without offshore CCS, storage hubs and shared infrastructure, the hard-to-abate sectors won’t have any chance to reduce their emissions as required under the Safeguard Mechanism.
State and Territory governments are backing regional hubs such as Darwin’s Middle Arm Sustainable Development Precinct and potential hubs in Gladstone, Bell Bay, Gippsland, Newcastle, and Southwest WA.
The allocation of the new CCS permit areas should encourage State and Territory governments to strengthen their support for projects that can help lower emissions in their regions.
CO2CRC will work with all stakeholders to advance Australian CCS projects, including through our expanding partnerships in the Asia Pacific region.
Over the last month this has seen visits to our Otway International Test Centre from Japan’s Tokyo Gas, Malaysia’s Petronas University and 24 delegates from National Cheng Kung University and National Science and Technology Council in Taiwan.
We were delighted to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Taiwanese university to advance collaboration on CCUS research.
Collaboration with internationally respected industry, academic and government partners, enables CO2CRC to deliver innovative research, products and services designed to improve the cost-effectiveness and demonstrate the environmental integrity of CCUS technologies and methodologies.
That is a focus that will only increase in the years ahead.
Dr Matthias Raab, CEO.
DOWNLOAD CO2CRC CCS Projects in Australia Map.
CO2CRC and National Cheng Kung University sign MoU on CCUS
Dr. Matthias Raab, CEO CO2CRC (centre-left) and Dr. Bieng-Zih (Max) Hsieh, Professor of the Department of Resources Engineering, on behalf of NCKU (centre-right), sign the MOU on CCUS, 15 July, 2024.
CO2CRC Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Taiwan’s National Cheng Kung University to advance collaboration on CCUS research and scale-up.
Read the full press release HERE.
CO2CRC welcomes representatives from Tokyo Gas
On Tuesday July 9 CO2CRC Chief Operating Officer Paul Barraclough met with three technical representatives from Tokyo Gas for an engaging meeting at CO2CRC’s Otway International Test Centre.
“Tokyo Gas was very interested in CO2CRC’s research with The Research Institute for Innovative Technology of the Earth (RITE) from Japan to increase the storage capacity of geological pore space using a groundbreaking technology known as microbubble,” Paul Barraclough said. “Microbubble is a distinct and important component of CO2CRC’s Stage 4 project. Our objective in testing this innovative technology is to determine if it is a useful mechanism to promote dissolution of carbon dioxide deep in saline formations so the formation can be used to store a greater amount of carbon dioxide.”
CO2CRC looks forward to an ongoing productive relationship with Tokyo Gas as we continue to research emissions reduction technology.
Tokyo Gas’ Naohiro Ishiwada, Hideto Kurokawa and Hisataka Yakabe with CO2CRC’s Paul Barraclough at CO2CRC’s Otway International Test Centre
A visit of University Teknologi Petronas at Otway International Test Centre
GRPS Site Operator Peter Dumesny and CO2CRC Paul Barraclough with Petronas University delegates Muhammad Yusoff bin Mohd Nasir, Abdul Halim Abdul Latiff, Hisham bin Mohamad, Izzatdin bin Abdul Aziz, Khairul Arifin Mohd Hoh and Mohd bin Hilmi Hasan at the OITC.
On July 10, five representatives from Petronas University in Malaysia visited the Otway International Test Centre, hosted by CO2CRC Chief Operating Officer, Paul Barraclough.
“Asia Pacific is turning to carbon capture and storage as a key emission-reduction solution, with intercountry collaboration to help reduce CO2 emissions a high priority.” Mr Barraclough explained, “One country at the forefront is Malaysia.”
“Malaysia has a strong oil and gas industry and has the infrastructure, skills and geological storage capacity to make Carbon Capture and Storage a viable option for future investment in the country. It is natural that students and academics specialising in reservoirs, chemical engineering and petroleum engineering turn to CO2CRC for more information on the increasingly important technical area of CCUS. “
“CO2CRC looks forward to continuing its relationship with Petronas University as while CCS technology is already to a stage where it can make a huge impact on carbon dioxide levels globally, knowledge sharing and collaborative relationships are vital to continue to achieve technological advancements to make CCS cheaper and more straight forward to use to address hard to abate emissions,” said Mr Barraclough.
Taiwanese Delegates Visit Otway International Test Centre
Dr. Bieng-Zih (Max) Hsieh, Professor of the Department of Resources Engineering, on behalf of NCKU, and Dr Max Watson, CO2CRC, at the Otway International Test Centre.
In July, 24 delegates from the Taiwan National Science and Technology Council with National Cheng Kung University, National Taiwan University, National Central University, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Academia Sinica together with CPC Corporation, Te Chang Constructions and GIE Energy Asia, visited CO2CRC’s Otway International Test Centre.
Dr Max Watson, CO2CRC’s Senior Manager – Technology Development, provided an in depth tour of the OITC, profiling the significant research undertaken over the past 20 years by CO2CRC and its partners.
“Taiwan has shown strong interest in carbon capture storage and utilisation technology for over two decades including a Taiwanese CCUS association forming in 2015. CCUS has been identified as a key technology that, in the near future could significantly reduce Taiwan ’s CO2 emissions, with significant suitable storage sites identified in Taiwan’s west.” Dr Watson said
The Otway International Test Centre is CO2CRC’s research and development site operating for 20 years to improve the reliability and commerciality of CCUS.
Follow CO2CRC today on LINKEDIN to keep up to date with the latest news on our ground-breaking demonstration and research projects.
CO2CRC Training and Education
CCUS Fundamentals Course Wednesday 2 October 2024 - Online
Enjoy the convenience of CO2CRC’s industry leading full day CCUS Fundamentals course delivered directly to your office or training room. CO2CRC’s Fundamentals Course provides targeted knowledge exchange on all things CCUS to upskill yourself or your team in CCUS. MORE INFORMATION
Contact Max Watson for more information.
CCUS Principles Practices and Applications 20-22 August 2024 Delivered Virtually
For a deeper dive into the emerging industry of CCUS, join us for our comprehensive training course, “CCUS Principles, Practices, and Applications.” Developed by CO2CRC, Australia’s leading research organisation in CCUS, this course is designed to equip participants with a relevant, practical understanding of the technical principles and engineering solutions applicable to CCUS. Contact Max Watson or read more information.
Energy Transition News
28/07/2024 Petronas Secures Land for Malaysia CCS Hub – Rigzone. Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) has secured land to progress its Southern Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) hub project in Pahang.
27/07/2024 Exxonmobil Partners With CF Industries For Ammonia Production With Carbon Capture In Mississippi – Carbon Herald. ExxonMobil has struck an agreement with CF Industries to capture and store up to 500,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide from CF’s facilities in Yazoo City, Mississipi.
27/07/2024 Methanex plans Alberta carbon capture – Chemical and Engineering News Methanex and the carbon capture technology firm Entropy are launching a front-end engineering and design study for a carbon capture plant at Methanex’s methanol facility in Medicine Hat, Alberta.
25/07/2024 Underground CO₂ storage: Researchers measure carbon mineralization at unprecedented small scale – Phys.org Pacific. Northwest National Laboratory scientists have developed a process that transforms CO2 into solid rock.
23/07/2024 Australia to Grant New Exploration Permits for Offshore Gas, CCS – Rigzone. The Australian government is awarding new permits for offshore gas exploration and CCS exploration.
23/07/2024 The European Commission publishes revised Guidance Documents to the CCS Directive – European Commission. Revised Guidance Documents supporting the implementation of Directive 2009/31/EC on the geological storage of carbon dioxide have been published.
22/07/2024 Scotland Approves Millions In New Funding For Acorn Carbon Capture Project – Carbon Herald. Scotland’s First Minister announced earlier today that a fresh round of funding for the Acorn carbon capture project has been approved.
18/07/2024 Santos close to carbon capture at Moomba as revenue rises– The Australian. Santos says its $335m Moomba carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, which promises to help in the transition to a net-zero economy, has reached the final commissioning stage.
17/07/2024 Europe’s pathfinding cross-border carbon capture project on track for launch – The Straights Times (Singapore). The project is on track to receive CO2 in the fourth quarter of 2024, with a storage capacity of up to 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year, with an aim to expand to five million tonnes of CO2 per year eventually.
14/07/2024 France Confirms Carbon Capture Role With National Strategy – Carbon Herald. France’s national carbon capture strategy confirms that the technology will play a role in the country’s decarbonization efforts.
12/07/2024 Canadian player wins $750 million for CCS project and targets project sanction in mid-2025 – Upstream. News of Strathcona Resource’s unusual project comes days after another Canadian carbon capture deal involving Shell.
11/07/2024 Inquiry recommends ban on carbon storage in Great Artesian Basin – The Australian. States and territories should consider a legislated ban on carbon capture and storage activities across the Great Artesian Basin, a parliamentary committee has recommended following an inquiry.
10/07/2024 Occidental Clinches Record Carbon-Removal Deal With Mega-Buyer Microsoft – Bloomberg Oil giant Occidental Petroleum Corp. clinched a record carbon removal deal with Microsoft Corp. amid the software titan’s push to reduce its expanding emissions.
10/07/2024 Woodside and Cemex tip $10m into Melbourne start-up to accelerate decarbonisation via carbon capture and storage – The Australian. Woodside Energy and Mexican building materials giant Cemex are among investors to inject $10m into Melbourne KC8 Capture Technologies to accelerate the “decarbonisation of critical industries”.
09/07/2024 Emission possible: Our approach to carbon management – CSIRO. Allison Hortle, Science Director of CSIRO Energy said carbon management technologies are a crucial part of our net zero future.
08/07/2024 Norway to Explore Hydropower, CCS Projects in Indonesia – Egypt Oil and Gas. Norway plans to form a stronger partnership with Indonesia and explore investment opportunities in renewable energy such as hydropower and CCS.
05/07/2024 New contaminant-tolerant catalyst could help capture carbon directly from smokestacks – TechXplore. A newly designed catalyst created by University of Toronto Engineering researcher efficiently converts captured carbon into valuable products.
05/07/2024 Indonesia To Transform Energy Sector With 15 CCS And CCUS Projects By 2030– Carbon Herald. Indonesia is set to make significant strides in transforming its energy sector with the implementation of 15 CCS/CCUS projects by 2030.
05/07/2024 Austria considers geologic storage in new CCS push – Gasworld. The Austrian government recommends lifting the ban on CO2 geological storage as it steps up its carbon management and strives to become climate neutral by 2040.
03/07/2024 European Commission approves Swedish carbon capture aid plan – Reuters. The European Commission on Tuesday approved a 3 billion euro Swedish scheme to support carbon capture and storage aimed at helping the country meet its goal of zero net emissions by 2045.
02/07/2024 Carbon Removal Industry Reckons With a New Problem — Too Many Startups – Bloomberg. There are more than 800 startups promising to draw carbon dioxide from the air.
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