The creation of a Scottish carbon dioxide (CO2) hub can provide a stepwise, affordable route to a carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry in the UK, according to a new report.
The report by Scottish Carbon Capture & Storage said that the hub could use existing infrastructure, established shipping technologies and storage assets in the Central North Sea.
“The hub would serve as a central collection point for CO2 emissions from different sources across Europe, from where the greenhouse gas would be transported for permanent storage in rocks deep beneath the North Sea,” the report said.
The starting point would be a modest industrial and power CCS cluster in Central Scotland that can make use of existing pipelines and offshore infrastructure.
The report added that the proposal could be achieved economically and rapidly. It could:
- Re-use existing infrastructure – thus avoiding decommissioning costs;
- Generate value from a CO2 utilisation market created through CO2-enhanced oil recovery; and
- Use a flexible shipping solution for CO2 transport from the southern UK and European sources.
Scottish CCS director Stuart Haszeldine said: “From a small start capturing emissions in Scotland with transport and storage based on existing assets, the system can be progressively expanded to receive CO2 from England and Europe using shipping, instead of large expensive pipes.
“By the early 2020s this can achieve a key milestone in the deployment of CCS – the establishment of commercial storage operations in the North Sea – with a whole new industry following from that.”
Image: sxc