Core sampling signals next step in large-scale sequestration project

BLUEFUELENERGY.COM: A large-scale carbon dioxide sequestration project is under development in northern British Columbia, Canada. The project is located near Spectra Energy’s Fort Nelson natural gas processing plant. The project is an international collaboration that includes Spectra Energy, the Province of British Columbia, Natural Resources Canada, the Plains CO2 Reduction (PCOR) Partnership, and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

In its press release the DOE describes the project as one of the first commercial-scale carbon capture and storage projects in a saline aquifer in North America. With projected storage of over two million tons of CO2 per year it is slated to be one of the largest carbon sequestration projects in the world. The goal of the project is to develop technology, infrastructure and regulations for the implementation of large-scale CO2 sequestration.

The PCOR Partnership has begun collecting core samples and is implementing a well logging program. “Core sampling and well logging help determine a site’s geologic suitability for safe and permanent storage of CO2. Coring of the Elk Point rock formations at Fort Nelson will provide researchers, geologists, and reservoir experts with characterization data of the carbonate formations that will be used to store the CO2 and the impermeable shale layers above that will act as a cap rock to contain the CO2. As part of these activities, numerous geomechanical and geochemical tests designed to evaluate the performance of the reservoir and containment rocks will be performed.

The information collected from the core samples, together with tests and well logging, will be critical in developing simulation models and the anticipated design and implementation of CO2 injection. The project is expected to involve the eventual transportation of CO2 from Spectra Energy’s Fort Nelson natural gas processing plant to the injection site.”

This is just one of many stories about CO2 capture and storage appearing recently. For Blue Fuel/DME producers these news stories are promising ones. For conventional producers of Blue Fuel/DME from coal and natural gas feedstocks, the development of carbon capture and storage technology at the production stage is crucial for the acceptance of their product in a world increasingly dominated by the concept of carbon-neutrality. In addition, should producers of conventional or carbon-neutral Blue Fuel/DME sell their product for utilization at a point source such as an electrical power plant, carbon capture and storage at the end stage would further enhance the green profile of their fuel, increase its competitive edge and further reduce its impact on global climate change.

BC Hydro solicits bids for biomass energy projects

BLUEFUELENERGY.COM: On March 5th, BC Hydro, the British Columbia Crown corporation responsible for the generation and distribution of electricity in Canada's westernmost province, issued a press release to mark the launch of phase two of its Bioenergy Call for Power.

BC Hydro is conducting what they are describing as a two-stream call process. The first stream is a competitive call for larger-scale biomass energy-generation projects. Any form of biomass will be eligible and it will include wood waste sourced from new forest tenure enabled through provincial legislation in May 2008. The target is to acquire 1,000 GW/h per year of energy through this stream.

Phase II will encourage opportunities for clean, carbon-neutral energy from biomass fuel sources, including underutilized forest-based biomass (e.g. trees and wood chips) and those using other forms of biomass derived from renewable organic matter, such as crops, aquatic plants, manure, or clean, organically sourced material separated from municipal solid waste. The biomass source used as fuel must comply with the Province’s Clean or Renewable Electricity Definitions.

"The Bioenergy Call is part of an effort to transform the future of forestry in B.C. while moving us another step forward on the road to achieving electricity self-sufficiency by 2016," said Blair Lekstrom, Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. "The call creates opportunities for new jobs, new revenue streams and new electricity generation in communities around the province, while creating new uses for wood and agricultural waste products."

Although the implications for DME/Blue Fuel in this biomass electricity generation project are not immediately clear, since biomass is currently one of the major feedstock categories for DME production in places like Sweden, the jump from using biomass for electricity production to using it for DME is not a giant leap. BC Hydro says that forest-industry wood waste will be one of the sources of fuel burned to create heat for steam-driven turbines - so why couldn't this same biomass be used to drive DME-driven turbines?

Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell says that "Bioenergy is a real opportunity to convert underutilized forest biomass to clean, carbon-neutral electricity." From a DME/Blue Fuel perspective, the key phrase here is "carbon neutral."

Minister Bell also said that "If you have ideas on clean-energy production and it's broader than just wood waste, we are willing to look at them." Could this mean DME/Blue Fuel? There's absolutely no reason it couldn't.

Minister Lekstrom stated that the projects most likely to come to fruition are those that involve smaller, remote communities that are located off the Hydro grid at present - ideal candidates for DME/Blue Fuel.

BC Hydro is Canada's third-largest electric utility and and serves customers in an area containing over 94% of BC's population.