CCS/CCUS: The Oil and Gas Industry's Key to Reducing Carbon Emissions
The world is currently pushing for an energy transition towards cleaner sources. The Global Net Zero Emission target by 2050 doesn’t necessarily mean that every country must completely abandon fossil fuels. Instead, we must ensure energy security and affordability to meet global energy demands.
The oil and gas industry is contributing to this transition by implementing Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) to reduce carbon emissions while also exploring investments in the renewable energy sector. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), these carbon capture technologies could reduce global CO2 emissions by 17% by 2050. CCS and CCUS are considered the most reliable technologies for significantly reducing atmospheric CO2 compared to other efforts.
What are CCS and CCUS?
CCS is the process of capturing CO2 from emission sources such as coal-fired power plants, oil and gas processing facilities, factories, or even directly from the atmosphere. Once captured, CO2 is compressed and injected into underground geological formations for long-term storage.
CCUS takes this a step further. After CO2 is captured, it’s repurposed for various uses, such as producing synthetic fuels, enhancing oil recovery, or being utilized in other industrial production processes.
The idea of capturing and storing CO2 as a way to reduce atmospheric emissions was first proposed in 1977 by Italian physicist Cesaro Marchetti.
In the oil and gas industry, the carbon capture and utilization concept behind CCS/CCUS is similar to Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), a method used to increase oil production in mature wells. EOR has been practiced in the US and Canada since the 1960s. Chevron led the first large-scale CO2-EOR project, the Scurry Area Canyon Reef Operating Committee (SACROC) in Scurry County, Texas, injecting over 175 million tons of natural CO2 between 1972 and 2009.
Examples of CCS/CCUS Projects
According to the Global CCS Institute, CCS technology has been in commercial use for decades. One of the earliest CCS projects is the Sleipner Project in Norway, operational since 1996. It’s a large-scale commercial and scientific demonstration project that stores CO2 under the sea, enabled by Norway's carbon tax policies. The project has stored over 20 million tons of CO2 since its inception.
Another key project is the Weyburn Project, recognized as the world’s most comprehensive multidisciplinary scientific study on geological CO2 storage. Over 12 years, starting in October 2000, it successfully stored more than 35 million tons of CO2. Following the research phase, the Weyburn Project transitioned into a commercial operation.
Countries worldwide are racing to adopt CCS/CCUS technologies. Saudi Arabia and China launched their CCS projects in 2015, and Indonesia is also preparing. Currently, there are around 15 CCS/CCUS projects in the development phase in Indonesia.
Criticism of CCS/CCUS Technology
Although CCS and CCUS are considered reliable for large-scale carbon reduction, they also face several criticisms, including:
- High Costs: Capturing, transporting, and storing CO2 is expensive, requiring large-scale economies to make it commercially viable.
- Energy Efficiency: The CO2 capture process demands additional energy, which can reduce the overall efficiency of energy systems.
- Leakage Risks: There’s concern that stored CO2 could leak back into the atmosphere, undermining the main goal of this technology.
- Distraction from Energy Transition: Critics argue that CCS is merely a way to shift focus away from reducing the use of fossil fuels, which are seen as dirty energy sources.
While CCS/CCUS offers great potential to slow down climate change, it’s not the sole solution. This technology should be viewed as part of a comprehensive strategy aimed at reducing CO2 emissions across various sectors while supporting the development of renewable energy and energy efficiency.
