What Is Carbon Capture, Utilization, And Storage (CCUS)?
Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) is a way of removing CO2 from industrial processes before it is emitted into the atmosphere, and then storing it in geological formations. It is also referred to as Carbon Capture and Storage or Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS). The latter indicates utilizing the captured carbon dioxide for other purposes, such as converting it into materials or fuels or for Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR).
CCUS is considered a critical technology for meeting our Paris Accord goals. By removing carbon emissions from heavy industrial processes such as at power stations, cement production facilities, and refineries, emissions targets can more easily and more quickly be achieved than if we rely on renewables and reforestation efforts alone.
CCUS facilities’ capture capacity reached 244 million tonnes in 2022, a 44% increase over 12 months, according to the Global CCUS Institute.
While investments in CCUS technologies remain insufficient, there is some positive movement on carbon capture facilities and technology. Over 150 new facilities are currently under development. Without CCUS, we will not meet emissions reduction goals and we will not be able to secure a decarbonized energy future.
Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage is a 3-step process.
1. Carbon Capture
CO2 emissions are captured at source during or after the combustion process. The gas is separated from other gasses to prevent it from being released into the atmosphere.
2. Transportation
After being compressed, the CO2 is transported to storage or utilization sites by pipelines or road or sea transport.
3. Storage or Utilization
Having arrived at storage facilities, the carbon dioxide is then injected into rock formations deep inside the earth. There are some well-known storage locations, but it is estimated that there is more space underground than we will ever need for the safe and permanent storage of CO2.
Utilization directs carbon dioxide to facilities where it is used in other production processes.
How Does It Work?
There are a number of techniques for capturing carbon during industrial processes. The most common process involves pumping cooled exhaust gas through a chamber and using chemicals that bind to CO2 molecules. The carbon is then captured for storage, while the rest of the exhaust gas is released.
What Are The Main Benefits Of CCUS?
1. It Is Well-Understood Technology.
CCUS techniques were first developed in the 1970s for EOR, so industrial actors, particularly in energy generation, understand how it works and how to deploy it.
2. It Is Highly Effective.
Given that electricity production and transportation make up around half of our atmospheric CO2 emissions, and given that fossil fuels power roughly 80% of those sectors, removing carbon from those production processes at source can have a major and immediate impact on our efforts to reduce emissions.
3. It Is Measured, Verified, And Highly Regulated.
The carbon captured and utilized (or stored/sequestered) using CCUS is easy to measure and verify, and the practice is highly regulated. Meters are installed at facilities. Carbon credits earned through the use of CCUS are among the highest quality in the market.
4. CCUS Is Ethical And Just.
Cheap fossil fuels are the fastest way that less developed countries can develop and industrialize. Energy poverty, which is “the lack of access to sustainable modern energy services and products” affects one billion people on earth, mainly in Africa and Asia.
That number rises to closer to 4 billion when we consider people living in varying degrees of energy poverty.
Condemning people in less developed economies to generations of energy poverty by denying them access to fossil fuel-generated electricity is unjust and immoral. It is even more so, given we have the technology, in CCUS, to produce carbon-neutral fossil fuel-based energy.
5. It Is A Pragmatic Way To Fight Climate Change.
We remain reliant on fossil fuels, and that reliance will not change any time soon. Certainly, not quickly enough to meet our shared decarbonization goals. Therefore, making fossil fuel-based energy production carbon-free is a highly pragmatic way to address our atmospheric carbon challenges.
What Are The Main Criticisms Of CCUS?
1. CCUS Delays The Transition From Fossil Fuels To Renewables.
Critics point to CCUS as a means to delay our transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. While CCUS does allow for the justified continuation of fossil fuel use for our energy needs, it makes that energy production carbon neutral. The argument is also counterfactual. We will continue to rely on fossil fuels to meet our energy needs, and that has been proven by the incremental contribution renewable energy can make.
On the same basis, one may also logically argue that reforestation perpetuates fossil fuel use, as it helps absorb the atmospheric CO2 created during the energy generation process.
But the main point is: if we can advance our decarbonization goals through our entire suite of energy sources, does it really matter what those energy sources are?
2. It Is Expensive.
CCUS is an expensive process to install and utilize. Hence, there is a pressing need for policymakers and private energy sector participants to invest in ramping up CCUS facilities in use.
We need to invest in solutions that work to help us decarbonize rapidly. CCUS is easily the most effective.
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