What is it about?
Carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) faces a number of critical challenges to its development, including the adoption of an appropriate legislative framework and the need for full chain risk assessments. Above all it needs to be cheaper, something the government’s ‘CCS cost reduction task force’ (CCRTF) has been looking at. The task force’s final report (CCRTF, 2013) estimated that CCS-equipped fossil-fuelled power plant generation costs would currently be £161/MWh, falling to £114/ MWh by 2020 and £94/MWh by 2028. Compared to averages of £85/MWh for nuclear power and £107/MWh for onshore wind farms over 5 MW, CCS clearly has some way to go – though it is at least comparable with offshore wind farms, for which generating costs are typically £164/MWh. Furthermore, Hammond and O’Grady (Proc. Instn Civil. Engrs: Energy, 2013; 167 (1): 9-19) demonstrate that CCS is likely to deliver only a 70% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions on a ‘whole systems’ basis, including both upstream and operational (or ‘stack’) emissions, in contrast to the normal presumption of a 90% reduction. The briefing also summarizes the findings of several papers published in a Themed Issue on developments on carbon dioxide capture and geological storage in the Proc. Instn Civil. Engrs: Energy (Volume 165, Issue 2, May 2012).
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Why is it important?
The UK government has set a challenging yet legally binding target of reducing the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80% in 2050 compared to 1990. While not a final solution, carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) could certainly help towards meeting this target, allowing continued burning of fossil fuels with reduced gas emissions. Greater financial incentives for CCS could be secured through higher carbon dioxide prices from the EU emissions trading scheme, though this has actually fallen from €20/t in 2011 to €5/t in 2013. To bolster the mechanism, the UK government introduced a ‘carbon floor price’ from 1 April 2013 at £16/t. A recent industry study [by the Energy Technologies Institute ((ETI and Ecofin Research Foundation (ERF), 2012] examined how to attract private finance for CCS technology in the UK, which could be a ‘huge prize’.
Perspectives
CCS forms part of a wider low carbon strategy for the future. It is clearly important to reduce energy demand in the UK and elsewhere. This could be achieved, in part, by the array of methods available to improve the efficiency with which energy is produced and consumed. That would militate against climate change and enhance energy security. But on the supply side the situation is arguably more complex. In the period leading up to 2050, the choice of UK power technology will not just be determined by economic factors alone, and the way in which they dynamically interact with a smart grid and consumer demand will also be important issues. The UK Coalition Government has recently stated in its CCS roadmap that it intends to support the commercial deployment of CCS in the UK by the 2020s. This includes the EU-stimulated requirement on any new fossil fuelled power stations to demonstrate this technology, i.e., to be ‘capture-ready’.
Professor Emeritus Geoffrey P Hammond
University of Bath
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Carbon dioxide capture and storage faces a challenging future, November 2013, ICE Publishing,
DOI: 10.1680/cien.2013.166.4.147.
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