Clean coal technologies and Carbon Capture and Storage

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our or .

| Sourced From |

Clean coal technologies

In general, Clean Coal technologies refer to two areas:

The first area is that of reducing the traditional pollutants emitted by coal combustion, such as SOx, NOx and particulates. The related technology has been developed. Such cleaning processes have been and are being installed in coal fired power plants in the Member States concerned.

The second area is that of the improvement of the conversion efficiency, it is the energy efficiency of the conversion of coal into electricity.

Good progress has already been achieved, with today’s best available technology allowing efficiency up to 46% for hard coal plants and 43 % for lignite plants.

It is the aim to the Clean Coal activity under FP7 to further raise these maximum efficiencies, to above 50%, through further R&D and better integration of components. The focus is not only on the two typical combustion techniques (the ultra supercritical pulverised coal plant (AD 700)), and the Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle plant (IGCC), but also on other combustion options, such as fluidized bed and oxyfuel.

Carbon Capture and Storage

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is seen as one of the key technologies for cutting CO2 emissions from coal power plants: Carbon emissions are captured before entering the atmosphere and stored underground. In close co-operation with industries and Member States the EU presently supports the development of CCS in coal-fired power plants. The aim is to make zero emission power generation using CCS commercially feasible by 2020.

Carbon capture and storage as well as other clean coal projects are among the focus of the 7th Research Framework Programme.

Supporting CCS demonstration (CCS Project Network)

The European Council endorsed in March 2007 the Commission’s intention to stimulate the construction and operation of a set of CO2 Capture and Storage (CCS) demonstration projects by 2015. The successful operation of these demonstration projects is seen as crucial for wide-scale commercial application of this technology. It is considered feasible that CCS will be able to stand on its own feet in an Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) -driven system by 2020 or soon after.

In its communication “Supporting Early Demonstration of Sustainable Power Generation from Fossil Fuels” [COM(2008) 13 final] the Commission presented a strategy to support the development of these CCS demonstration projects, including the launch of a European Industrial Initiative on CO2 capture, transport and storage.

The Commission intends to generate early benefits from a coordinated European action by creating a network of CCS demonstration projects. CCS demo projects fulfilling minimum qualification criteria will be invited to join the network and benefit from its operations.

The network will allow early-movers to exchange information and experience from large-size industrial demonstration of the CCS technologies, to maximize their impact on further R&D and policy making, and optimize costs through shared collective actions. It is anticipated that, as the network evolves, its EU-wide, integrating, and binding role may be further reinforced and complemented by other measures in support of further development of CCS technologies, building towards the establishment of the European Industrial Initiative.

Role of the contractor

The contractor Det Norske Veritas AS (DNV) will assist the Commission in establishing the CCS project network by complementing general Commission capacities through the provisions of specialized technical expertise and by organising events as well as monitoring participating projects using appropriated methodology. The Contractor shall provide services to the Commission for the initial three years of the Network’s operation. These services should help build the Network’s identity, both within the industrial and research communities and beyond (e.g. with policy makers and general public).

The purpose and goals of the CCS project network

The CCS project network will provide first movers with means of coordination, exchange of information and experience as well as identify best practices in order to make optimal use of best technologies available in Europe. Additional benefits will be provided through commonly executed public awareness actions and interaction with partners in third countries, offering higher cost-efficiency and impact in comparison to efforts undertaken on individual basis. Participation in the Network will also provide a marketable identity for the projects as parts of a crucial EU initiative and a higher visibility of individual efforts. Participating projects will be recognized as contributors to an action of common European interest. Information will be gathered through the network to help focus on policies establishing a long-term value chain for CO2 and facilitate the Europe’s decision making and reaction speed. Furthermore, the network should guide coherent and effective interaction of participating projects with related R&D undertaken across the EU.

Main activities of the contractor

The main activities of the contractor consist of the following technical and executive tasks:

1. Developing and revising qualification criteria for projects

Criteria that a demonstration plant has to fulfil in order to join the project network will be defined early in 2009 in order to enable swift take off of the network. These criteria could include for example plant size, commitment of the operator to deploy industrial scale CCS plant, capture rate, commitment to share information/experience. Since the Commission would like to achieve geographically balanced demonstration exercise, location would also play a role. The criteria will be flexible enough to include smaller plants with clear commitments to upscale in the future. The Commission could decide to revise the criteria at a certain point, having gained some experience from the process, in order to ensure that the network evolves towards a balanced portfolio of technologies. In the initial stage however, all projects fulfilling originally designed criteria will be allowed to access the network.

2. Coordination of CCS demonstration projects

One of the tasks of the network is the efficient coordination of the projects taking part. The contractor will develop a common methodology to monitor, analyse and evaluate the projects and to identify best practises, including harmonised follow-up of the storage safety issues and contributing its technical competences to the CCS project network. This methodology will be applied once first projects join the network.

3. Information and communication

The CCS project network’s information and communication strategy will focus specifically on the participating projects. This will include gathering, analysis and exchange of information and experience between projects in a regular and structured manner. Efficient exchange of information between the projects will be crucial for creating a discernible benefit to all the projects in the network.

Information and communication strategy will include a number of externally-oriented actions such as building of a brand for the network itself as well as providing this brand to the individual projects. A dedicated website enabling knowledge sharing will be designed and maintain.

4. Actions to increase public awareness

Actions to increase public awareness of CCS technology will be tailored for the needs of the network’s demonstration projects. This will be done by using sound evidence and information obtained through the execution of the demonstration projects and by taking into account the particular need to address the public perception of safety, long term liability and environmental impact of CCS. This task will be carried out in close interaction with European Technology Platform for Zero Emission Fossil Fuel Power Plants (ETP-ZEP) in order to identify synergies and avoid duplications with public communication activities already undertaken by the Platform.

5. International cooperation

The network will follow international developments in the CCS demonstration area, both regarding specific projects and more general programmes and policies. Potential areas for international cooperation and information exchange with industrialised countries as well as with emerging economies will be defined in order to draw from experience and knowledge from already existing initiatives and projects and also share the knowledge generated in Europe. . Contribution to the wider international collaboration activities of ETP-ZEP is foreseen, in particular where it could generate synergies.