Operating costs on CCS project lower than expected: Shell Canada
Operating costs on Shell Canada’s carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, Quest, have come in 30% lower than expected. The Scotford Upgrader-based project also proved more efficient at storing CO2 safely underground instead of releasing it into the atmosphere than had been anticipated. The reduced operating costs were due to lower fixed costs and energy efficiency savings, and could allegedly be lowered further by using joint transport and storage facilities. Shell Canada shared its costing findings from the Quest project with the Canadian Government to ensure future CCS projects have similar outcomes.

The first carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in the oilsands is exceeding expectations, its operator says.

Shell Canada says the Quest project at its Scotford Upgrader is demonstrating CCS as a real solution to climate change, at lower operating costs than expected.

“Quest has been working better than planned, both in preventing CO2 from entering the atmosphere and in safely storing that CO2 deep underground, since its start-up celebration last November,” the company says.

“Both its capture technology and storage capability have helped Quest exceed its target of capturing one million tonnes of CO2 per year, and through careful study and monitoring, the subsurface geology is proving ideal for long-term, safe storage of CO2.”

Shell says it has also learned enough from the Quest project to significantly reduce costs for future CCS faciliites.

“If Quest was built again today, we estimate that it would cost 20-30 per cent less to construct and operate thanks to a variety of factors including capital efficiency improvements and a lower cost environment,” says Zoe Yujnovich, Shell’s executive vice-president, oilsands.

She adds that all intellectual property or data generated by Quest is publicly available because of the project’s partnership with the federal and provincial governments.

“Together with government, we are sharing lessons learned through Quest to help bring down future costs of CCS globally.”

Shell says one of the lessons learned has pointed to how significant cost savings could be achieved through joint transportation and storage facilities. For example, another capture facility could be tied into the existing Quest pipeline for CO2 storage.

“Operating costs for Quest are also 30 per cent less than anticipated, mainly due to lower fixed costs and energy efficiency savings,” the company says.