World Bank CCS Program activities in South Africa – Results and Lessons Learned

Abstract

The World Bank Group (WB) Carbon Capture and Storage Trust Fund (CCS TF) was established in 2009 to support CO2 capture and storage (CCS) capacity and knowledge building in developing countries11The WB CCS TF donors include the governments of the United Kingdom and Norway, and the Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute. This support is intended to create opportunities for the WB partner countries to explore their CCS potential and, if appropriate, to facilitate the inclusion of CCS options into their low-CO2 growth strategies and policies. Nine countries were selected in Phase 1 of the CCS TF support including South Africa.CCS TF Phase 1 support for CCS in South Africa included an allocation of US$ 1.35 million and had the objective of supporting the Government of South Africa by undertaking three specific studies:1.The development of a regulatory framework for CCS in South Africa2.A techno-economic review of CCS implementation in South Africa3.The development of a national and local public engagement plan for the South African Pilot CO2 Storage ProjectThe South African Department of Energy (DoE) and the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) were the beneficiaries and counterparts for these WB supported CCS studies. The South Africa CCS Roadmap, developed by SANEDI and released in 2010, defined several milestones to understand and develop the potential for CCS in South Africa. The implementation of the Pilot Carbon Storage Project (PCSP) is planned as the next milestone in the Roadmap to be completed between 2017 and 2021. The PCSP scope includes the transport, geological storage and monitoring of between 10,000 and 50,000tCO2, sourced from an industrial facility.The WB selected the Environmental Resources Management Southern Africa (ERM) as the lead consultant for the legal and regulatory assessment, undertaken in association with Carbon Counts and IMBEWU Sustainability Legal Specialists. The aim of the legal and regulatory assessment study was to review the existing legislation and regulation in South Africa to identify gaps and barriers for the authorisation and regulation of the PCSP with the view to informing the development of a CCS regulatory framework. The ERM consortium worked closely with the South African DoE and the Inter-Departmental CCS Task Team (IDTT), which was established in 2011 to inform, coordinate and promote the development of CCS in South Africa. The study recommended the following four options for regulating CCS in South Africa, using the existing regulations or a new regulatory framework:1.The National Environmental Management: Waste Act (NEM: Waste Act).2.The National Environmental Management Act (NEMA)3.The NEMA and the Mineral Petroleum Resource Development Act (MPRDA).4.The development of stand-alone legislation, specifically for the purposes of regulating CCS.The aim of the second study was to develop a detailed technical and economic analysis for large-scale development and deployment of CCS across South Africa's industrial installations by 2050. The WB lead consultant for the technical and economic analysis study, Parsons Brinckerhoff, reviewed and recorded CO2 sources and CO2 storage locations (as identified in the Atlas on Geological Storage of CO2in South Africa) and conducted the subsequent analysis of how these sources and sink can be connected in the most cost effective way under varying roll-out scenarios. The analysis found that large-scale CCS could be deployed in South Africa at a levelized average cost of ZAR 422 per metric ton of CO2 across all industrial sectors. The study found that the capital up-front costs of this large-scale deployment were significant but could be mitigated by taking a phased approach to CO2 capture deployment.The aim of the public engagement study was to develop a comprehensive plan for raising public awareness, informing and engaging with various public stakeholders in South Africa, both at the national and local levels, on the CCS technology deployment and respective management of potential risk. The public engagement took into account international best practice as well as South African specific considerations. Specific aspects, addressed the study, included:•Raising awareness of CCS as a possible climate change mitigation measure;•Helping to develop an understanding of key concepts in the CCS technology, subsurface storage and key issues;•Outlining the benefits and potential risks of demonstration and deployment of the CCS technology in South Africa; and•Placing CCS in the context of South African climate change mitigation, energy production and use, coal use, resource development, job creation, amongst others.The WB selected SRK Consulting South Africa as the lead consultant for the study, in association with Finley-Greenberg, and the World Resources Institute (WRI), prepared National and Local Stakeholder Engagement Plans, which recommended that stakeholder engagement commence at the national level with government officials before proceeding in turn to the provincial, district municipal, and local municipal levels.Following the conclusion of these studies a number of lessons were learned with regard to: the involvement of relevant stakeholders in the scoping and delivery of studies; and, how results are communicated to maximise the impact of the work.