By paNOW Staff

Government forges ahead with Carbon Capture project

Apr 26, 2011 | 11:55 AM

Saskatchewan's south-east will be home to one of the world's first commercial-sized carbon capture and storage facilities.

The provincial government announced a $1.24 billion project that will see the Boundary Dam reservoir near Estevan upgraded. The dam will be transformed into a producer of reliable, clean electricity while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by approximately one million tonnes per year, said Rob Norris the minister responsible for Saskatchewan Power Corporation.

“SaskPower and its private-sector partners are leading the world in the development of a technology that will help to address climate change while ensuring that we can continue to use coal as an energy source for many years come,” he said, in a release.

The federal government is providing $240 million to assist in the development of the project

Saskatchewan has been at the forefront of carbon sequestration. It involves carbon dioxide gas being injected deep into the earth. The process stores the greenhouse gases indefinitely. It can also help oil companies retrieve some reserves easier.

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Construction on the project will begin immediately, with operations commencing in 2014. The new generating unit at Boundary Dam will have the capacity to generate 110 megawatts (MW) of electricity.

In addition to capturing CO2 for enhanced oil recovery operations, the Boundary Dam project will also capture sulfur dioxide (SO2) to be used in the production of sulphuric acid, the government said.

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