The world’s first power station with large-scale carbon capture and storage has been inaugurated in Canada this week, shortly before a UN October meeting in Bonn at which the technology will be discussed by governments and other relevant stakeholders.
The 110MW retrofit of SaskPower’s Boundary Dam coal-fired power plant in Saskatchewan, Canada is to trap around 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. The captured CO2 is to be injected into nearby oilfields to enhance oil recovery.
The International Energy Agency has welcomed the launch of the world’s first large-scale power station equipped with carbon capture and storage technology as a milestone along the road to a low-carbon energy future.
According to the IPCC, carbon capture and storage is part of a mix of technologies required to allow the world to stay below the internationally agreed maximum two degrees average Celsius temperature rise.
During the next session of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (20 – 26 October) in Bonn, a technical expert meeting on carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS) will take place.
The meeting is part of the overall global effort to raise immediate ambition to fight climate change, with governments, international organisations, the private sector and other relevant stakeholders working together in areas which have high potential to curb greenhouse gas emissions. Previous meetings this year have focussed on cities, forests, land use, renewable energy and energy efficiency.
The Bonn 21 October technical expert meeting is to
- share views and experiences on options and opportunities to advance action on CCUS.
- explore barriers for scaling up action.
- propose options to overcome such barriers.
The discussion will be informed by showcasing projects in different regions using or storing CO2 from a variety of sources.
Image: SaskPower, Flickr