Overview of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Facilities Globally

Abstract

The Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Facilities Database maintained by the Global CCS Institute contains a comprehensive list of CCS facilities around the world, covering large-scale, pilot and demonstration scale facilities and test centres. This report presents a complete overview of the status of global CCS facilities. The review spans the full life cycle of the facilities, from early development to in completion, and covers a wide range of industries and sectors. Globally, as of September 2018, there are 23 large-scale CCS facilities in operation and under construction, capturing ~ 40 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of CO2. There are over 28 key demonstration-scale CCS facilities in operation and under construction. These demonstration-scale CCS facilities have a cumulative CO2 capture capacity of over 3 Mtpa. Early CCS facilities in the 1970s and 1980s involved processes in which CO2 was already routinely separated in a high purity form, such as in natural gas processing and fertiliser production for CO2 for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The technology and techniques derived from these early operations have significantly advanced the deployment of CCS. Nowadays, the portfolio of CCS facilities covers a diverse range of sectors, including power generation, iron and steel manufacturing, cement production, chemical and hydrogen production, and bioenergy. Consistent learning from the existing portfolio of large-scale and demonstration-scale facilities, when combined with rising global R&D efforts and commitments to emission reductions, can lower costs further and drive global CCS deployment using next generation and transformational technologies. Since 1972, more than 230 million tonnes of anthropogenic CO2 has been captured and injected into deep storage complexes. Over half of that CO2 is concentrated in the United States and mostly in CO2-EOR operations. It is critical to maintain the momentum by growing the pipeline of facilities in development. That pipeline currently includes six large-scale facilities in advanced development and 14 in early development. However, the current pipeline of large-scale CCS deployment does not go anywhere near the envisaged role of CCS to meet the Paris Agreement climate goals. To avoid dangerous climate change, CCS must be deployed across a broad range of industrial processes, particularly in regions that are heavily reliant on fossil fuels, where CCS can deliver on emission reductions and meanwhile meet economic development and energy security goals.