Eco Material and Rainbow will capture, beneficiate, and market all of the solid-form discharged materials from Coal Creek Station, adding to their existing partnership that markets fly ash in the concrete sector, in what the two companies are calling a “fully circular” power plant.

“We expect demand for high-quality sustainable cementitious materials (SCMs) like fly ash and pozzolans to grow rapidly over the next 10 years and we are excited to work with Rainbow to provide that for the industry,” said Grant Quasha, CEO of Eco Material Technologies. “This project is the culmination of a relationship between Eco Material and Coal Creek Station on fly ash beneficial use for over 30 years, and that partnership has only grown since Rainbow’s purchase of the facility in 2022. This project marks a key turning point in the SCM market for the region.”

The project will be the first beneficiation and harvesting plant in the state of North Dakota and the second bottom ash beneficiation and harvesting project within Eco Material’s portfolio. The Coal Creek project will provide an additional 400,000 tons annually of SCMs over the next 25 years to service the rapidly growing markets in North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The project will also beneficiate Coal Creek’s annual production of 150,000 tons of calcium sulfite into marketable synthetic gypsum, which will be primarily marketed to the wallboard industry by Eco Material.

Rainbow purchased the 1051 MW, 2-unit station at Coal Creek in May 2022, and the plant was originally scheduled to be shut down before this purchase. However, Rainbow infused capital into the plant, including these projects, to ensure it remains operational long-term. The plant currently produces approximately 500,000 tons annually of high-quality Class F fly ash.

Materials harvested from Coal Creek Station are and will be used in concrete blends to repair and construct bridges, roads, and buildings across the region. Coal ash replacement in cement has been shown to enhance the strength, impermeability, and durability of concrete, Eco Material said.

Eco Material will also be investing in additional storage terminals across the region to ensure that no winter ash is disposed of and that customers have the materials they need for projects in the region’s shorter summer season. The beneficiation plants at Coal Creek and the new regional storage terminals are expected to be completed in 2025.

Eco Material has a portfolio of nine plants producing or under construction that represent over four million tons per annum of novel, beneficiated SCMs and Green Cement products to help decarbonize the North American concrete market.

The roughly $142 million program would include new wastewater treatment equipment at the fossil fuel-burning plants to meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency effluent limitation guideline (ELG) requirements.

As proposed, the upgrades at the coal plants would be funded by ratepayers, starting at $0.51 a month for the average West Virginia residential customer. The surcharge would take effect when the first projects are implemented in 2024.

If the program is approved, the companies could complete the work by the end of 2025. Fort Martin and Harrison would operate until their planned retirement dates of 2035 and 2040, respectively. Fort Martin and Harrison were placed into service in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The utilities said they will work to evaluate ways to replace the coal plants’ capacity, which combined totals around 3,080 MW.

Previous environmental actions

In 2020, FirstEnergy said it planned pledge to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. According to FirstEnergy reports, Fort Martin Power Station has spent nearly $625 million on environmental control systems. The company reported each unit at the plant has a scrubber system, implemented in 2009, that removes more than 98% of sulfur-dioxide emissions.

According to FirstEnergy, Fort Martin is also equipped with electrostatic precipitators, removing 99% of the fly ash from flue gases.

FirstEnergy said environmental controls date back further at Harrison Power Station. The utility said Harrison has nearly $1 billion dollars in investments, including scrubber modules that remove more than 98% of the sulfur dioxide emissions. The scrubbers have been a part of the plant since 1995.

Selective catalytic reduction systems remove at least 90% of nitrogen oxide in the coal burned at Harrison.

NEW YORK (AP) — The Houston Ship Channel is home to petrochemical plants, power companies and heavy industries, all of which throw climate-harming emissions into the air.

In a process called “carbon capture and storage” (CCS), some industrial facilities capture this carbon dioxide before it leaves their plants, and then use it to develop products or store it underground.

Now Exxon Mobil has suggested turning the 50-mile-long channel into a CCS hub. The oil and gas giant is calling on industry and government to jointly raise $100 billion to create infrastructure to capture carbon dioxide at industrial plants, carry it away in pipelines and inject it deep under the floor of the Gulf of Mexico.

Joe Blommaert, President of Low Carbon Solutions at Exxon, says CCS is essential to meeting the goals of the Paris agreement while also meeting the growing energy needs of the world. Exxon has raked in more than $20 billion annually in profits over the past decade, on average, and nearly $300 billion annually in revenues. Blommaert talked with The Associated Press about the $3 billion that Exxon plans to spend on the business through 2025, and how the project might take shape. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: Your vision for the Houston Ship Channel calls for a $100 billion investment from companies and government. That’s a lot of money. How do you envision it would be spent?

A: Obviously, the scale is unprecedented. When you look into the details, actually, it is many capture facilities and storage facilities, and actually this CCS is executed at scale already around the world. What is important in my mind is this collaboration of the whole industry, the whole of government and the whole of society. And it is actually addressing climate change, which technically is a very complicated issue. It needs all of the solutions, and it is not one or the other. And that’s why with the Houston Hub we were so pleased with the 10 companies willing to step forward to help make this a reality.

Q: How much is Exxon willing to invest?

A: We are, just like other companies, assessing those opportunities. We’re working through our project and definition, and we will certainly do our part. I will not quote a specific number. We are working through that, as you can imagine. But the key is that policy to attract public and private investment in supporting this is put in place. And that’s why we talk about the value of carbon, which is essential.

Q: Can you tell me what percentage of the Houston Ship Channel project costs Exxon would likely contribute?

A: I will not give you the percentage, it’s obviously too early. Actually a meeting is scheduled in the next few days to talk about how to get organized, do governance, and so on. And then each company is actually looking at its own capture project, if you will, and the specific details. So more to come on that.

Q: Was this plan created in response to investor concerns about climate change?

A: We started this CCS venture about three years ago and actually that is now included in my business. And so we brought that to a stage that we could start thinking about how to really bring that to scale.

This was actually already quite quite well progressed, culminating in the creation of a (carbon capture) business that is now 30 this year, and we already had a portfolio of ideas. It’s just the right time for us.

Q: If Exxon believes this is important, why not dramatically reduce oil and gas production and invest more in renewable energy?

A: I fully appreciate this perspective on the issue, and I would come back to what I said earlier in terms of meeting the goals of the Paris accord and meeting energy and product demands that modern life requires, particularly when you think about the growth of society, 2 billion more people by 2050.

That energy mix will change, but that will still require energy sources from fossil fuels. That’s why it is actually so important to have technologies like CCS so that you can meet the energy supplies that the world needs in a way that the emissions are being abated, and that you can do that at the lowest cost possible to society. And you can do that now.

We’re buying renewable power. We do that through our power purchase agreements. We believe our strength really comes to the forefront through the deployment of technologies like CCS, like hydrogen, like biofuels. And those are technologies that are being recognized by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the International Energy Agency as technologies that society needs to meet modern life requirements.

The UK’s Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has named the East Coast Cluster (ECC) as a ‘Track-1’ cluster, putting it on course for deployment by the mid-2020s.

The Cluster is a huge carbon capture and storage proposal located on the East coast of the UK in the North Sea and is a collaboration between Northern Endurance Partnership, Net Zero Teesside and Zero Carbon Humber.

The announcement is a major step forward in establishing the first net zero-carbon industrial cluster in the UK by 2040.

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Grete Tveit, Senior Vice President for Low Carbon Solutions at Equinor, which is a partner of Zero Carbon Humber, Net Zero Teesside and Northern Endurance Partnership said: “We’re delighted that the East Coast Cluster has reached this milestone.

“As we mark and celebrate this major step, we look forward to continuing working closely with our partners, local communities, businesses, industry, and academia to deliver this ambitious and world-leading project that will play a major role in levelling up across the country”.

The East Coast Cluster will be vital for supporting low-carbon industry and power projects across the region. Once operational, the cluster has the potential to transport and securely store nearly 50% of all UK industrial cluster CO2 emissions – up to 27 million tonnes of CO2 emissions a year by 2030.

The project aims to create and support an average of 25,000 jobs per year between 2023 and 2050, with approximately 41,000 jobs at the project’s peak in 2026.

Louise Kingham, Senior Vice President, Europe & Head of Country, UK at bp said: “The East Coast Cluster can play a critical role in the UK Government’s levelling up ambition, supporting thousands of jobs and investing in local communities. Teesside and the Humber were once the industrial heart of the UK.

“Today’s announcement paves the way for them to become the green heart of the country’s energy transition, shepherding in the next generation of industry and ways of working.”

DOE announced financing for the quartet of regional CCUS deployments last week. Some estimates indicate that CCUS could reduce CO2 emissions from industrial resources significantly and contribute to the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

The carbon capture projects awarded by DOE include work based out of Ohio, New Mexico, Georgia and North Dakota. Each project was awarded approximately $5 million.

“Every pocket of the country can and will benefit from the clean energy transition, and that includes our expanded use of carbon capture and storage technology to remove carbon pollution from fossil fuel use,” said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Through DOE’s Regional Initiatives projects, we are making sure states—especially those with historic ties to fossil fuel industries—can access technology innovations to abate carbon pollution and enhance their local economies so that no worker or workforce is left behind.”

The Regional Initiatives are university-led partnerships with academia, non-governmental organizations, industry leaders, and local and state governments. The initiatives identify and promote carbon storage and transport projects by addressing key technical challenges; facilitating data collection, sharing, and analysis; evaluating regional storage and transport infrastructure; and promoting regional technology transfer.

• Battelle Memorial Institute (Columbus, OH) is leading the Regional Initiative to Accelerate CCUS Deployment in the Midwestern and Northeastern USA project in 20 Midwestern and Northwestern states to review regional infrastructure and technical challenges to deploying CCUS in three sedimentary basins and the Arches province.
• New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (Socorro, NM) is leading the Carbon Utilization and Storage Partnership of the Western United States project in 15 Western states to focus on compiling geologic datasets in the region for storage resource analyses and identifying data gaps.
• Southern States Energy Board (Peachtree Corners, GA) is leading the Southeast Regional Carbon Utilization and Storage Partnership project in 15 Southeast states to identify at least 50 potential regional sites to evaluate storage resource potential and infrastructure needs.
• University of North Dakota Energy and Environmental Research Center (Grand Forks, ND) is leading the Plains CO2 Reduction project in 13 Northwest states and four Canadian provinces to identify and address onshore regional storage and transport challenges facing the commercial deployment of CCUS in an expanded region.

The U.S. is home to numerous carbon capture projects nationwide already in the research phase. Those include the National Carbon Capture Center (pictured) operated by Southern Co., and the Petra Nova project in Texas.

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Carbon capture will be one of the topics of focus next week in the POWERGEN+ online series. Registration is free and sessions available on demand.

POWERGEN+ session on BTU analysis of hydrogen mix in power generation

The order by the state’s Public Service Commission gives new leases on life for the Amos, Mountaineer and Mitchell generating stations, which altogether total close to 6 GW in generation capacity. Two other states, Virginia and Kentucky, had refused to approve effluent limitation guideline (ELG) upgrades required for the plants’ continued operations.

By contrast, the West Virginia PSC ruled, those states will not be permitted to use any of the capacity or energy generated by the coal-fired plants since they will not share in the cost of the improvements.

The utilities, Appalachian Power Co. and Wheeling Power Co., must file separate requests for cost recovery to pay for ELG and coal combustion residue (CCR) upgrade work. Some estimates have those expenses as potential raising customers’ bills by about $2.64 per month.

Overall, the estimated total cost of bringing all three coal-fired plants into environmental compliance is nearly $450 million. The cost of replacing the collective generation at Amos, Mountaineer and Mitchell with other means was estimated at $2 billion or more if they were prematurely retired, according to the PSC report.

“The order points out that benefits of the plants’ continued operation to the state’s economy are considerable,” reads the PSC release about the decision. “Direct employment at the plants; use of West Virginia coal; state, county and local taxes related to operating generation plants; and related employment in businesses supporting the plants and the coal industry cannot be discounted or overlooked.”

Mountaineer Power Plant is owned by Appalachian Power parent AEP and generates close to 1,480 MW at capacity. Amos is a three-unit coal-fired plant also is owned by AEP-Appalachian and rates at 2,933-MW capacity, according to reports.

Mitchell is a 1,632-MW capacity plant.

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The future of coal-fired generation is a key topic for sessions happening at POWERGEN International this January 26-28 in Dallas. Registration is now open for the live event.

The October 27 online POWERGEN+ series will feature sessions around carbon capture and gas-fired power’s role in the energy transition. Registration is free and sessions available live and on demand.

The Australian government released its annual Energy Statistics report Tuesday, showing that coal is the top resource accounting for 54 percent of the nation’s electricity mix in 2020. Renewables rose nearly 15 percent to generate almost a quarter of Australian electricity last year, while natural gas fueled 20 percent and was the most-used energy source for the manufacturing sector over the past two years.

Like many nations, Australia is embracing solar, wind and energy storage, while also maintaining a strong place currently for fossil-fired power.

“Balance is the key,” Australian Energy Minister Angus Taylor said in the government release Tuesday. “The energy system is changing at an unprecedented pace, which is why we need to get the energy balance right to ensure Australian households and businesses can continue to access the power they need to grow and prosper.”

Coal-fired power still holds the key to Australian power generation, but its lead is eroding. The Liddell coal-fired station will be closed by 2023, while Hong Kong-owned Australian utility EnergyAustralia plans to accelerate the retirement of its 1,400-MW Mont Piper coal-fired plant in New South Wales by 2040, three years ahead of the closure initially announced.

The government also has committed $180 million U.S. to a major new carbon capture, use and storage project. It will build carbon capture hubs and research ways to commercialize CCUS technologies and storage.

Resource adequacy, of course, is a concern, so the Australian government will build a 600-MW gas-fired power station in New South Wales to aid capacity after the Liddell facility is retired. (Pictured is the gas-fired combined cycle Tallawarra Power Station in New South Wales).

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Coal-fired power, natural gas and renewables all will be key topics of discussion in sessions at POWERGEN International when it happens live Jan. 26-28 in Dallas, Texas. Registration is now open and discounts are available for utilities.

The large-scale deployment of carbon capture and storage technology has gained wide industry support in Houston with 11 big energy players supporting the initiative.

The 11 companies include Calpine, Chevron, Dow, ExxonMobil, INEOS, Linde, LyondellBasell, Marathon Petroleum, NRG Energy, Phillips 66 and Valero agreeing to scale the deployment of the technology at their facilities.

The companies agreed to increase the amount of carbon captured and stored to 50 million tonnes per annum by 2030 and to 100 million tonnes per annum by 2040 to mitigate climate change in Houston.

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The firms plan to capture carbon at facilities that produce products consumed by society on a daily basis and that use plastic, motor fuels and packaging, materials that are harmful to the environment yet consumers heavily rely on.

Sylvester Turner, Mayor of Houston, said: “Houston can achieve our net-zero goals by working together, and it’s exciting to see so many companies have already come together to talk about making Houston the world leader in carbon capture and storage.

“We’re re-imagining what it means to be the energy capital of the world, and applying proven technology to reduce emissions is one of the best ways to get started.”

The project, if fully deployed, is expected to help Houston capture and store 75 million tonnes of carbon by 2040, helping the city to move closer to its 2050 net-zero goal.

The aim is to encourage the use of technology to grow the city’s green economy and generate thousands of clean jobs and save lives from climate change at a lower cost.

Although renewables will continue to play an important role in a lower-carbon energy future, CCS is one of the few proven technologies that could enable some industry sectors to decarbonize, such as manufacturing and heavy industry.

The International Energy Agency projects CCS could mitigate up to 15% of global emissions by 2040, and the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates global decarbonization efforts could be twice as costly without CCS.

DOE announced the funding for Direct Air Capture (DAC) experimentation and research efforts. Carbon reduction efforts may not be enough to help reach the federal goals of net-zero carbon by 2050.

“Finding ways to remove and store carbon directly from the air is an absolute necessity in our fight against the climate crisis,” said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “This investment in carbon capture technology research through universities and DOE laboratories will position America as a leader in this growing field, create good-paying jobs, and help make our carbon-free future a reality.” 

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The nine awards are led by two national laboratories and seven universities, including North Carolina A&T State University, an Historically Black University. The awards tackle topics including discovery of novel materials, chemistries, and processes for extraction of carbon dioxide from air, and combined experimental and computational studies on carbon dioxide capture for sequestration or reuse.   

The selected projects include: 

• Washington State University and Oklahoma State University will use energy efficient approaches to convert carbon dioxide capture into useful products. (Award amount: $4.8 million) 
• University of Illinois, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Case Western Reserve University will advance novel approaches that use electricity or light to control the capture and/or release of carbon dioxide. (Award amount: $9 million) 
• North Carolina A&T State University, Oregon State University, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory will explore new materials and chemical compounds with the potential for improved efficiency for carbon dioxide capture and regeneration. (Award amount: $6.6 million) 
• Northwestern University will examine how the dynamical behavior of promising carbon capture systems impacts their carbon dioxide capture and release. (Award amount: $3.3 million) 

Total funding is $24 million for projects lasting up to three years in duration, with $8 million in Fiscal Year 2021 dollars.

Editor’s Note: I was given the honor to write a short piece as introduction to this week’s edition of our sister publication Smart Energy International, based in South Africa. I focused on a few things I had observed regarding the wide world of decarbonization, which involves far more than just renewables.

A little excerpt here: “A former US energy regulator some time ago offered some clarification on how the nation’s utilities might reach a cleaner energy future.

“It’s not a race to renewables,” he said. “It’s a race to decarbonize.”

Recent events seem to prove his point. New Jersey-based utility PSEG sold off its fossil-fuel generation to a private equity firm for nearly $2 billion. Lest anyone believe the company is all in on only renewables, PSEG made it clear it was sticking by its nuclear fleet…\

“…The Middle East is also starting to embrace nuclear. Companies from all over Europe and Africa are looking at the prospects of both hydrogen and liquified natural gas.

“So there is more than one way to bake a cake, as long as that recipe brings the temperature down, not up.”

Click here to read the full thing in SEI. Also remember that next week I am hosting an exciting array of POWERGEN+ online sessions centered around Decentralization and the New Energy Mix. Those sessions will feature work on microgrids, automated intelligence, the impact of distributed generation and much more. Hope you can join us.