Abstract
In March 2014, Mexico launched its CCUS technology roadmap, outlining the actions to be taken up to 2024. One important action is the National Policy of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) ready and the identification of priority natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) with capture plants. This outcome could aid the creation of a technology roadmap for the design of new NGCC power plants and their operational requirements for EOR and for the reduction of CO2 emissions. This article provides an overview of the opportunities for deploying CCS in new NGCC power plants in Mexico which were programed to begin operation throughout the period from 2016 to 2030. The attention is given to plants close to oil fields which are candidates for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), located in an inclusion zone suitable for storage. The Gulf of Mexico region, where potential EOR sites and the presence of industrial CO2 sources are located, is within the inclusion zone for recommended sites for geological storage of CO2. After identifying new power plants in the inclusion zone, this article analyses which existing plants could be retrofitted and which new power plants could be designed to be ‘carbon capture ready’. In addition, the distance and the volumes of CO2 are estimated.
Highlights
Mexico’s installed electrical capacity is predicted to grow by 57,122 MW between 2016 and 2030, of which 20,453.7 MW of the installed capacity will correspond to Natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) (Mexican Ministry of Energy, 2016, page 16)
One of the strategies proposed to reach this objective is the application of carbon capture technology in fossil fuel power stations for the purpose of enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in the oil industry, which relies on the availability of significant sources of industrial CO2 in the Gulf of Mexico between 2020 and 2050 (Lacy et al, 2013)
New power plant sources of CO2 close to the oil fields of Burgos, Chicontepec, and Cinco Presidentes. The step in this analysis is to address, at this early stage in the deployment of CCUS in Mexico, is whether the potential emission reductions achievable by capture-equipped power plants identified in the previous section – all located inside the inclusion zone of Figs. 2, 3, and 4 – matches the contribution that Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) power plants are expected to make for Mexico to meet its CO2 emission target i.e. “reduce its greenhouse emissions by 50% below 2000 levels by 2050” (SEMARNAT-INECC, 2016)”
Summary
Mexico’s installed electrical capacity is predicted to grow by 57,122 MW between 2016 and 2030, of which 20,453.7 MW of the installed capacity will correspond to Natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) (Mexican Ministry of Energy, 2016, page 16). One of the strategies proposed to reach this objective is the application of carbon capture technology in fossil fuel power stations for the purpose of EOR in the oil industry, which relies on the availability of significant sources of industrial CO2 in the Gulf of Mexico between 2020 and 2050 (Lacy et al, 2013). According to Lacy et al (2013), carbon capture projects for the purpose of EOR rather than for geological storage in deep saline aquifers, are more likely to be initially developed in Mexico because of the cost offset associated with additional oil revenues. The aim of this paper is to complete the initial work of Lacy et al (2013) by providing an overview of the potential for incorporating CO2 capture into the large number of gas-fired power plants expected to begin operation throughout the period from 2016 to 2030 for storing CO2 in geological strata and CO2 for EOR projects.
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