The Essential Role of CCUS in the Energy Transition
With Charles McConnell, Executive Director, Carbon Management and Energy Sustainability at the University of Houston
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Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) technologies have been around for decades but were widely seen as too capital intensive and lacking sufficient ROI.
However, the technologies - which allow for the carbon released during power generation or other industrial processes to be captured and stored or used for another product or service (e.g., using it as an input to create methanol) - are now firmly back on the agenda as countries aim to achieve ambitious net zero climate goals.
The Biden administration, for instance, has earmarked more than $12 billion in CCUS investments as part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill. It will also be issuing further guidance on CCUS as part of its plans to reduce emissions in the industrial sector.
Many European governments have also pledged increase support for CCUS, such as Norway’s Longship project and the UK’s support for 5 industrial CCUS hubs.
Some environmentalists, however, are opposed to the widespread deployment of CCUS. They believe it fosters continued dependence upon fossil fuels and detracts from investment in alternative energy sources.
That’s an argument that simply takes time away from the technical and business challenge that confronts us, says Charles McConnell, Executive Director, Carbon Management and Energy Sustainability at the University of Houston.
Renewables are unable to meet our global energy needs, he says, and we need to reduce our carbon emissions as quickly as possible.
“We need to keep our eye on the ball. Our goal is not to eliminate fuels and technologies. Our goal is to eliminate emissions,” he says.
The IEA says the current pipeline of CCUS projects still falls well short of the needed 1.7 billion tonnes of CO2 capture capacity that must be in place by 2030. The world needs to dramatically increase its investment and pursuit of CCUS deployment.
“We need to do everything we can to create pathways for rapid and successful deployment [of CCUS]," says McConnell. "We must translate that political will into deployable technology and commercial activity. It’s a must and not an option."
McConnell has decades of industry experience and served as Former US Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy, a politically appointed role to execute policy and operate the Fossil Energy Department. In this interview, he discusses the role of CCUS in the energy transition and what he thinks it will take to make widespread commercial deployment of the technologies a reality.
Diana Davis, Oil and Gas IQ: In the past, CCUS technologies were seen as incredibly capital intensive. Where are we now with the current state of these technologies?
Charles McConnell: In the past, people looked at CO2 emissions capture and ultimately CCUS as a big cost that had no rate of return. The capital intensity of the investments for capture and storage was – and remains - very high....
