Game changer for CCS: Boundary Dam, Canada plant unveiled 02 October 2014

SaskPower has today (2 October 2014) launched its flagship CCS (carbon capture and storage) project, finally unveiling the much anticipated addition to its Boundary Dam power plant in Saskatchewan, Canada.

It's the first of its kind – a commercial-scale coal-fired power plant CCS plant, and its developers believe the project has the potential to be "a global game changer".

Boundary Dam combines post-combustion CCS with coal-fired power generation that aims to reduce carbon emissions by 90%, transforming one of the world's most abundant and affordable sources of energy to one of the cleanest.

Saskatchewan is believed to hold about 300 years supply of quality coal, which currently generates around half of the Canadian province's electricity.

Transforming this coal fired power station into a producer of low-carbon, base-load electricity involves capturing 1 million tonnes of CO2 per year.

Some of the captured CO2 will be liquefied and bought by oil companies for use in enhanced oil recovery, helping to extract otherwise uneconomic crude and providing an additional revenue stream for the plant.

The new Boundary Dam CCS project will also capture sulphur dioxide, which can be converted to sulphuric acid and used in industrial processes.

An additional by product of coal combustion, fly ash, will also be captured and sold for use in concrete, with the remaining CO2 stored permanently by injecting the gas some three kilometres under the ground.

Luke Warren, CEO of the CCS Association, believes the project is a model for plants around the world in demonstrating a long-term, economically sound way of reducing carbon emissions.

"The launch today goes beyond a single project. SaskPower has made significant progress in making a valuable contribution to demonstrating a viable technical, environmental and economic case for the application of CCS to power plants," states Warren.

"It is hoped that Boundary Dam will form part of a much needed commercial proof point that the economics make sense," he continues.

"From a UK perspective, we need examples of successful CCS more than ever. Boundary Dam highlights the need for government to maintain momentum in delivering the CCS Commercialisation Programme and ensuring that a second phase of CCS projects are developed in parallel with the current competition projects."

Warren insists that a steady roll-out of projects is now urgently needed to ensure that "CCS becomes cost-competitive with other low-carbon technologies" in the 2020s.

"The UK is world-leading in developing an enduring policy framework to support CCS alongside renewable and nuclear under the Electricity Market Reform programme, but it is vital that the policy delivers real projects as soon as possible," he warns.

Brian Tinham

Related Companies
Carbon Capture and Storage Association

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