News aggregator

WRI summary of the Waxman-Markey Discussion Draft CCS Provisions

Article includes discussion of the Waxman-Markey hearings as well as mention of the WRI CCS Guidelines

.....The World Resources Institute argued yesterday that any U.S. energy and climate policy has to put special emphasis on making clean coal a reality, because none of the other energy alternatives come close to matching coal’s leading role in the U.S. energy mix.

An E.On spokesman said: “We will be seeking clarity on the funding mechanism to complete the fitting of CCS to the rest of Kingsnorth, the framework for the associated CCS infrastructure and how the Government intends to create a level playing field between new, cleaner coal and existing unabated coal in the UK.”

Article outlines the different approaches by UK, Canada, and Germany regarding requirements for CCS at new coal plants.

This article presents a case for replacing all old coal plants with new... Does it take the efficiency gains of retrofits into account accurately?

Describes Letter from Australian Academics citing that it's too late for CCS

Australia led the discussions on carbon capture and storage technologies at the meeting. "This is one of our priority areas as a government, for two reasons: globally you cannot reduce emissions by the amount the world needs without a low-emissions technology for coal," Ms Wong said. "And it is in Australia's national interest as the world's largest coal producer."

The 200 years of storage estimate might be right, but local geologic data at the site where you plan to inject CO2 is essential to ensuring that the geology is appropriate for storage and that there aren't any leakage pathways... and with several projects using the same geologic basin, it becomes critical that monitoring includes both the injected CO2 and any formation fluid that might be displaced by the injection.

Utah Governor Jon Huntsman plans to visit Chnia in May...Huntsman said China has set aside roughly $300 billion for renewable energy and carbon capture technology. "The central government in Beijing has made this a national priority, and now they have no choice but to begin looking for partners," he said.

A couple of other bills aimed to add regulatory guidelines for storing carbon dioxide under ground, but in the end, just one bill made it through the process. Senate Bill 498 was amended to give carbon sequestration authority to the state land board. "It is in the best interest of the state to have this bill passed because when the time does come that the Federal Government does come with their rules and regulations, that the state can step up and say yes we are ready to do this" explained Sen. Keith Bales (R-Otter). That bill passed through the legislature and will be transmitted to the Governor.

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Canadian government plans to impose stringent new climate-change rules targeting coal-fired power plants would hit Alberta hardest and not necessarily cut carbon emissions sharply, TransAlta Corp's chief executive said on...

Reviews Big Sky partnership activieites and Montana Governor's support of CCS.

Reviews the impact the bill would have on CCS demonstration and deployment

Note discussion about potentail US-China collaboration on CCS

Includes link to video from 60 minutes.

Kuwait Minister also encurages global development of CCS and supports CCS in the CDM

North sea energy hub vs. demos? Darling wants the North Sea to become a hub for energy of the future—gas storage, carbon capture, and offshore wind. He proposes to achieve this by removing fiscal barriers and offering £405 million of new funding for low carbon energy and advanced green manufacturing in Britain—to drive the application of new technology and invest in small scale projects. The chancellor announced support for as many as four demonstration carbon capture and storage projects instead of one. He has dedicated £90 million to pay for more research into the technology, with the European Commission likely to fund demonstration sites and a "new funding mechanism," Darling said. This is expected to be a levy on consumers' bills.

He questioned whether enough money is being spent in Kentucky and across the country to research carbon capture and other energy issues. He said $24 million over 10 years is "a pretty modest amount of money compared to what needs to be done to address some of the technical issues associated with the management of carbon."

Check out the video