getting
India ready for
carbon capture
& storage
Rudra Kapila and Jon Gibbins
India's challenge of improving the living standards of its growing population through a low-emission
development calls for early adaptation of carbon capture and storage (CCS) though the available
storage capacity in India is limited. Early involvement by India in CCS R&D activities to gain from global
knowledge sharing and technology transfer will open short and long term solution vistas of utilization,
sequestration or overseas shipment of CO2.
July - September 2010 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
10
H
owever efficiently fossil fuels are used, they still emit carbon dioxide
to the atmosphere and each tonne raises the risk of dangerous
climate change. Over time the level of that risk is likely to become
clearer, and the only way to contain it is, if fossil fuels are used, to employ
carbon capture and storage (CCS) so that most of the resulting carbon
dioxide emissions do not enter the atmosphere.
thirteen more efficient coal-fired Ultra-Mega
Power Plants (UMPPs), which would entail a
further 52G Wof installed capacity coming on
line starting in 20124.
CCS typically involves separating out the CO2 formed from the carbon in
the fossil fuels, compressing it into a dense liquid at over 100
atmospheres pressure and then placing it a kilometre or more
underground, in 'sponge-like' porous rocks with an impermeable rock
sealing layer above them, where it is expected to be held permanently
over many millennia or longer. A good overview of CCS is given in the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report on CCS1. This was
published in 2005 but still is a valuable reference document. Indeed, in
some respects CCS has appeared to move relatively slowly since then
because, as the technology gets close to deploying the first full-scale
projects, much of the work is commercially sensitive and does not get
published so freely. Introducing legislation to regulate and fund CCS
also takes a significant amount of time, compared to undertaking
conceptual studies.
As well as making a vital contribution to
economic growth this may also offer some
opportunities to lay the foundations for future
emission reductions through CCS. The Indian
Government has already initiated this process
through its National Action Plan on Climate
Change (NAPCC)5. One worthwhile activity is to
investigate how the UMPPs and other industrial
projects can be made carbon capture ready
(CCR – see Box 1) at the design stage. In
addition, India's involvement at the early R&D
stage of capture technology development will
enable access to the global knowledge sharing
and technology transfer process, encouraging
innovation and development of CCS systems
designed specifically for Indian conditions.
With a rising population linked to an increased energy
demand, India is expected to become one of the top three
CO2 emitters in the world by 2030; it is currently ranked sixth
Carbon Capture and Storage
and Capture Readiness – UK
experience to date
With a rising population linked to an increased energy demand, India is
expected to become one of the top three CO2 emitters in the world by
2030; it is currently ranked sixth2. Out of the country's present installed
electricity generation capacity of around 160GW, roughly 55% is
generated by thermal power plants3, mostly from coal. This capacity is
likely to be increased significantly in the next 10-20 years; India has plans
to upgrade and extend its current fleet of power plants by investing in
In the UK most of the major CCS
developments so far, since 2005, have been in
the field of legislation, taking steps which are
essential in advance of CCS deployment.
Actual projects are being planned but final
investment decisions have yet to be made.
Box No. 1
and identify credible ways in which they could be
overcome.
w
Estimate the likely costs of retrofitting capture,
transport and storage.
w
Engage in appropriate public engagement and
consideration of health, safety and environmental
issues.
w
Review CCSR status and report on it periodically.
Definition application
These essential requirements represent the minimum
criteria that should be met before a facility can be
considered CCSR. However, a degree of flexibility in
the way jurisdictions apply the definition will be
required to respond to region and site‐specific issues
and to take account of the rapidly changing
technology, policy and regulatory background to
CCS and CCSR, both globally and locally. More
specific or stringent requirements could be
appropriate, for instance, in jurisdictions where the
CCSR regulator is working on the assumption that
CCS will need to be retrofitted to a particular facility
within a defined time frame.
Essential Requirements of a CCSR facility
The essential requirements represent the minimum criteria that should be met
before a facility can be considered CCSR. The project developer should:
w
Carry out a site‐specific study in sufficient engineering detail to ensure that the
facility is technically capable of being fully retrofitted for CO2 capture, using one
or more choices of technology which are proven or whose performance can
be reliably estimated as being suitable.
w
Demonstrate that retrofitted capture equipment can be connected to the
existing equipment effectively and without an excessive outage period and that
there will be sufficient space available to construct and safely operate
additional capture and compression facilities.
w
Identify realistic pipeline or other route(s) to storage of Co2.
w
Identify one or more potential storage areas which have been appropriately
assessed and found likely to be suitable for safe geological storage of
projected full lifetime volumes and rates of captured Co2.
w
Identify other known factors, including any additional water requirements that
could prevent installation and operation of CO2 capture, transport and storage,
Source: CCS‐ready information from the Ad‐hoc CCS‐Ready
working group set up at the 2010 IEA/CSLF/GCCSI CCS
Ready workshop in Ottawa Canada.
http://www.iea.org/papers/2010/ccs_g8.pdf
http://www.iea.org/index_info.asp?id=1418
The timing of these decisions is, of course, linked closely to availability of
funds. Early CCS projects cannot be expected to cover their costs from
measures that are already in place, such as the EU Emissions Trading
Scheme. The time to develop CCS as a proven full-scale technology is
well before CO2 emission caps are made tight
enough to require its widespread use.
Deploying CCS can then help to achieve the
reduction targets while limiting how high the
11
July - September 2010 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
Definition of carbon capture and storage ready (CCSR)
A CCSR facility is a large‐scale industrial or power source of CO2 which could and
is intended to be retrofitted with CCS technology when the necessary regulatory
and economic drivers are in place. The aim of building new facilities or modifying
existing facilities to be CCSR is to reduce the risk of carbon emission lock‐in or of
being unable to fully utilise the facilities in the future without CCS (stranded
assets). CCSR is not a CO2 mitigation option, but a way to facilitate CO2 mitigation
in the future. CCSR ceases to be applicable in jurisdictions where the necessary
drivers are already in place, or once they come in place.
getting India ready for carbon capture & storage
carbon price is and, the cost society pays for reducing CO2 emissions,
will rise.
The UK's Energy Act of 20106, passed with strong cross-party support in
April, just before the recent election, includes primary legislation to allow
the costs of CCS demonstration projects to be met by imposing a levy
on electricity supply. The secondary legislation to define the details of
how this money is paid, how projects will be selected and so on, still has
to be developed, however. One key question is whether payments are
based on the amount of low-carbon electricity produced or on the
amount of CO2 stored. Another is whether or not CCS projects on
natural gas will be included on the initial programme of around four CCS
demonstrations, as recently suggested by the UK Committee on Climate
Change7. Although gas produces less CO2 per unit electricity than coal,
each tonne of CO2 emitted still carries the same risk, and with gas now at
low prices, it is generating nearly 50% of the UK's electricity and it is on
the rise.
One key question is whether payments are based on the
amount of low-carbon electricity produced or on the amount
of CO2 stored.
July - September 2010 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
12
A piece of legislation that is even more urgent, however, is one to make
all new power plants greater than 300MW capacity 'carbon capture
ready' (CCR – also sometimes known as carbon capture and storage
ready – CCSR). There is only one real chance to make power plants and
other large fossil fuel facilities capture ready (or storage ready for oil and
gas fields), which is when they are being designed and changes can be
made at minimal cost. Capture readiness guidelines have been
published8, based on an earlier study for the IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D
Programme9. The first UK power plant has recently been consented
under these new guidelines - a natural gas combined cycle unit near
Manchester10.
Work is actively under way to translate the capture ready concepts into
detailed engineering designs11. The basic principles for capture
readiness are largely common sense – see the
latest summary definition shown in Box 1 – but
to the extent that all large power plants are
different, they have to be tailored to each
individual project and site. This need not cost
a great deal of money since little or no extra
equipment has to be purchased. What is
needed is 'intelligent space' throughout the
plant so that the interconnections and services
required by a range of possible types of
capture equipment can be put in place without
unnecessary costs and with the plant shut
down only for normal outages. There also
needs to be a larger space available (which
can be used for other purposes until required)
on which to site the capture plant itself and a
pipeline route to storage.
Although it is not clear yet which of the new gas
power plants being built in the UK will need to
be retrofitted with CCS – some may end up
being used only for peaking operations or be
closed down altogether – since there is only
one opportunity to make a plant capture ready
and the costs are low, it is being carried out in
all cases as a precaution.
Work is actively under way to translate
the capture ready concepts into
detailed engineering designs
Carbon capture and storage and
capture readiness in India
Similar arguments about having one chance to
put 'intelligent space' for possible capture
equipment apply anywhere that new fossil
power plants are being built. Would this be
relevant for new Indian power plants too, to
help them be capture ready for new CO2
capture technologies being developed in India
and elsewhere?
One obvious issue is - what CO2 storage
capacity would be available in India?. The
permanent storage of CO2 is generally
expected to involve the injection of CO2 into
suitable large sedimentary basins with a good
impermeable rock sealing layer. This can
include depleted oil and gas fields, unmineable
coal seams, and deep saline non-potable
water-bearing reservoir rocks.
Figure 1: India's planned and existing CO2 sources in 2008, and geological basins
with good storage potential (source: IEAGHG 2008)
A study conducted for the IEA Greenhouse
Gas R&D Programme (IEAGHG) in 200812
looked at the storage capacity on the Indian
subcontinent. Areas where there may be
significant CO2 storage potential are highlighted
in red in Figure 1. This map also illustrates the
existing CO2 sources as well as the planned
UMPPs. The first thing to note on this map is
It is likely that the immediate driver for any Indian CO2
injection offshore will be hydrocarbon recovery, rather than
CO2 emission mitigation, and that oil and gas exploration will
take precedence over CO2 sequestration for at least the next
ten to twenty years .Scientists in India have also been
investigating alternative means of CO2 storage, chiefly by
mineral trapping mechanisms within basalt rock samples,
sequestration within terrestrial ecosystems and bio-fixation
through micro-algae for fuel generation
India has been researching clean coal technologies for a number of
years, including R&D on CO2 capture processes, and is actively
engaged with carbon sequestration leadership forum (CSLF), an
initiative started by the US Dept. of Energy. Scientists in India have also
been investigating alternative means of CO2 storage, chiefly by mineral
trapping mechanisms within basalt rock samples, sequestration within
terrestrial ecosystems and bio-fixation through micro-algae for fuel
generation17. Mineralisation in basalt rocks is of particular relevance as a
very extensive portion of the central Indian peninsula consists of one of
the world's largest basalt lava flows, known as the Deccan trap
formation18. However, these studies are laboratory based, and it will be a
number of years before the technology could be proven to be safe and
deployable at scale.
Although the other prospects for geological storage of CO2 on the subcontinent look limited, a solution for India may be to consider shipping
CO2 to other regions that have more suitable capacity. The shipping of
CO2 is expected to be cost-competitive to pipelines if long distance
transport is required19, and is currently being regarded as an important
and emerging industry that could play a key role in developing the CCS
chain of technologies in Europe20. Exporting CO2 to the Middle East for
enhanced oil recovery is presently being researched21, and may be an
option, particularly as India is keen to develop its shipping terminals for
coal imports for the planned UMPPs.
References
1. Available at: http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_
data/publications_and_data_reports_carbon_dioxide.htm
2. IEA (2007). World Energy Outlook 2007: China and India
Insights. International Energy Agency, Paris, France.
3. Available at: http://www.ministryofpower.nic.in
4. http://www.rediff.com/money/2009/feb/02govt-may-limitumpp-number-per-company.htm
5. NAPCC (2008). National Action Plan on Climate Change.
Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change, Government of
India. Available at: http://www.pewclimate.org/international/
country-policies/india-climate-plan-summary/06-2008
6. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2010/ukpga_20100027_en_1
7. http://hmccc.s3.amazonaws.com/gas%20CCS%20letter%
20-%20final.pdf
8. http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/what_we_do/uk_
supply/energy_mix/ccs/ccs.aspx
9. http://www.iea.org/papers/2007/CO2_capture_ready_plants.pdf
10. http://pendragon-pr.co.uk/news/23/
11. http://www.sccs.org.uk/CCR18May
12. IEAGHG (2008). A regional assessment of the potential
for CO2 storage in the Indian Subcontinent. IEAGHG R&D
Programme Report, International Energy Agency Greenhouse
Gas R&D Programme, Cheltenham, UK.
13. http://www.ibef.in/artdisplay.aspx?cat_id=657&art_id=23190
14. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/jubilantenergy-finds-oilgas-in-cauvery/313755/
15. Ibid., 8.
16. Kapila, R., Chalmers, H., and Leach, M. (2009),
Investigating the Prospects for Carbon Capture and Storage
Technology in India, available at:
http://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/sccs/india-ccs-prospects.html
17. Goel, M. (2009), "Recent approaches in CO2 fixation
research in India and future perspectives towards zero
emission coal based power generation." Current Science,
Vol. 97, No. 11, 10 December 2009, pp 1625-1633
18. McGrail, B. P., H. T. Schaef, A. M. Ho, Y.-J. Chien, J. J.
Dooley, and C. L. Davidson (2006). "Potential for carbon
dioxide sequestration in flood basalts." J. Geophys. Res.
111(B12201).
19. Ibid., 1.
Conclusions
Given India's ambitions to improve the living standards of its growing
population, to the extent that this could be undermined by dangerous
climate change, it is also necessary to consider ways to lay the
foundations for a low-emission development pathway. Early
implementation of CCR on planned UMPPs could help to cut CCS costs
getting India ready for carbon capture & storage
in the long term and prepare India for global
deployment of CCS. Early involvement by India
in CCS R&D activities would allow it to be part
of the global knowledge share and technology
transfer process, and also ensure that systems
suitable for the unique Indian conditions were
developed. Storage of CO2 may prove a
challenge in the long term, as there is limited
capacity in the coastal margins of the subcontinent, but a medium term solution could be
to use CO2 for enhanced hydrocarbon
recovery. Other solutions could be to ship the
CO2 to Middle East, which has large potential
storage capacity, or, if it proves technically
feasible, to use sequestration in India's very
large basalt rock formations.
20. http://www.rivieramm.com/events/CO2-ShippingConference-24/Event-Home-257
21. Kapila, R.V. and R. Stuart Haszeldine (2009).
"Opportunities in India for Carbon Capture and Storage as a
form of climate change mitigation." Energy Procedia 1(1):
4527-4534.
(The authors belong to University of Edinburgh, Scotland.)
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July - September 2010 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
that the appropriate areas for permanent storage are predominantly oil
and gas-bearing sedimentary basins that lie on the coastal margins of
the peninsula. A number of these offshore basins are still being actively
explored for oil and gas, with recent discoveries made in the Cambay,
Krishna-Godavari13 and Cauvery14 basins. Therefore, it is likely that the
immediate driver for any Indian CO2 injection offshore will be
hydrocarbon recovery, rather than CO2 emission mitigation, and that oil
and gas exploration will take precedence over CO2 sequestration for at
least the next ten to twenty years. However, investment into offshore
infrastructure would provide a good foundation for CO2 injection in the
future, once the reserves have been depleted. The IEAGHG study
estimates the total storage capacity in Indian oil and gas reservoirs to be
between 3.7 and 4.6 Gt CO215. It is likely that this would not be large
enough to store the lifetime emissions of India's planned UMPPs (each
estimated to produce around 30 Mt CO2/year for a period of 35 years, or
roughly 1 Gt CO2 in total for each UMPP)16. Therefore, additional storage
options would be needed to deal with the CO2 that India could
potentially capture.