Subsurface Knowledge Helps Solve Carbon Storage Challenges

Dr. Carolina Coll, Head of Reservoir Development, CCS & Energy Storage for Viridien, recently spoke to Upstream about carbon capture’s role in the energy transition and how geoscience can accelerate and de-risk the development of CO₂ storage sites. 

What role does CCUS play in the path toward net-zero emissions and sustainable energy development? 

Carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) is probably the only group of technologies that directly contributes to mitigating emissions in areas where it is very difficult to avoid C0₂ emissions, such as large industrial hubs and the transport sector. However, the importance of CCUS in different regions and jurisdictions can change depending on different things, including local policies, regulations and the status of the power infrastructure. 

What are some common challenges for CCUS development in the oil and gas sector as well as other emission-intensive industries? 

Many CCUS challenges center around project timeframes and costs. Also incorporating new technologies into existing facilities. With CCUS, it is easier to start a project from scratch, what we call greenfield projects. Storage capacity poses another challenge — this includes the volume of available subsurface storage and its location. 

What are the risks associated with CCUS? 

In general, project scoping includes determining locations where the CO₂ can be stored, finding the sources of the CO₂, and how close they are to one another. Ideally, you want them as close as possible to reduce transport costs and risks. 

How much of this risk is related to subsurface factors? 

When you are reviewing a CCUS project, there are three things to look at. The first is the capacity of the storage site and what risks are present that may be affected by subsurface factors like permeability, porosity, and reservoir size.

The second item to review relates to injectivity—how much CO₂ can be injected, and how quickly. This affects the economics of a project, especially if it means that you need to deliver more wells for a project. This of course will have an impact on the project’s timeframe and cost. 

The last thing to look at is containment. For example, how long can we safely store CO₂ in a particular wellsite? Containment risks are related to the connectivity of the reservoir, faults, fractures and existing wells, which might be potential pathways for leaks.

Our extensive subsurface knowledge and Earth data library can help with all these challenges when developing CO₂ projects. 

Click here to view Carolina’s full interview on Upstream online.