Several of the world's largest carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects are significantly underperforming -- some of which capture half as much carbon dioxide as promised, an analysis shows.
CCS is regarded by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and other agencies as an important tool to combat climate change. The technology will receive strong support in a new climate bill enacted by the US government, and other countries are encouraging the adoption of CCS, including Norway and the UK.
A report released on September 1 analyzed the performance of 13 flagship CCS programmes around the world and found that most countries were capturing far less carbon dioxide than expected.
ExxonMobil's LaBarge plant in Shute Creek, Wyoming, is lagging behind in carbon capture by about 36 percent, the report said. The only large-scale power station in the world with CCS technology, the "Boundary Dam" in Saskatchewan, Canada, captured about 50% less carbon than planned. And Chevron's Gorgon natural gas project in Western Australia also captured about 50 percent less than planned in its first five years.
The report also mentions two failed projects, including the Kemper Coal CCS project in Mississippi, which was long-delayed and finally abandoned in 2017.
Bruce Robertson of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), who wrote the report, said: "Is CCS the answer to the climate problem? I would say no. Often, it doesn't perform as expected."
CCS, a technology that dates back to the 1970s, has in many cases been used to extract more oil from reservoirs than to curb climate change by capturing carbon dioxide over the long term. Robertson added that the underperformance of the programs was not due to a lack of financial or engineering resources. In fact, the Gorgon project alone cost A$3.1 billion.
On a more positive note, the report found that the Sleipner and Snøhvit CCS projects in Norway have been successful, thanks in large part to the country's unique commercial and regulatory environment. Robertson acknowledged that CCS could in the future play a role in heavy industries that struggle to stem carbon emissions, such as cement manufacturing.
Stuart Haszeldine of the University of Edinburgh, UK, said the IEEFA report was comprehensive, but it was "too simplistic" to claim that CCS didn't work. One reason CCS projects are underperforming is not the technology itself, but the lack of market incentives to store carbon dioxide, as well as good regulation, he said. "When the rules are right, CCS does work," Haszeldine said.
"Innovation at this scale is not without challenges, but the technology is feasible," a Chevron spokesman said. "The LaBarge plant captures more carbon dioxide than any other in the world," an ExxonMobil spokesman said. Too many factories.” (Original title “Fail or fall short of expectations Most of the world’s carbon capture projects fall short”)