MITSUBISHI & SHELL IN EMISSIONS CAPTURE CO-VENTURE

It is not as “New Age” and “New Energy” as solar and wind, but all the recent scientific studies have stressed the urgency of perfecting at commercial scale the to-now hypothetical and experimental concept of carbon-capture-and-sequestration (CCS).

Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) is the easiest part of the concept to prove and it may be a big car company and a big oil company who are doing it, but NewEnergyNews does not see any "greens" stepping up to prove these very expensive concepts.

On the other hand, there is reason to doubt "clean coal" is anything but an oxymoron.

It ought to get all the car company-oil company conspiracy theorists revved up anyway.

Mitsubishi, Shell to use power-plant CO2 for EOR
Eric Watkins, October 19, 2007 (Oil & Gas Journal)

WHO
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Royal Dutch Shell PLC

A 2004 IEA graphic showed EOR oil (in green) projected to be a big part of future production.

WHAT
Mitsubishi and Shell will develop emissions capture from electricity generating plants for injection to enhance oil well production.

WHEN
- The first contract for capture and oil well enhancement is expected in 2008.
- The agreement between Mitsubishi and Shell developed out of a memorandum of understanding to work together established in December 2005.

The idea is to get at every last drop. (click to enlarge)

WHERE
- The current announcement does not specify a location for the projects but the 2005 memorandum of agreement indicated the strategic alliance would apply to business opportunities in the Middle East.

WHY
- According to the companies’ research, each ton of CO2 injected to 1000 meters will enhance oil recovery by 4 barrels.
- The companies say they will build capture facilities with a capacity of 10,000 tons of CO2, thus enhancing oil well recovery by 40,000 barrels.
- The capture will be of power plant flue gases.

EOR is one way to use geologic structures to dispose of emissions. (click to enlarge)

QUOTES
Companies’ statement: “[CO2 will injected] in miscible flood techniques to improve the flow and recovery of oil from developed reservoirs."