ICO2N report puts numbers to using CO2 for enhanced oil recovery

Jul 04 2013


A new report, prepared exclusively for the integrated CO2 Network (ICO2N) by the Pembina Institute, analyzes the onsite and downstream GHG emissions from using CO2 for enhanced oil recovery.

The study, "Net Greenhouse Gas Impact of Storing CO2 through Enhanced Oil Recovery", focuses on analysing the on-site and downstream GHG emissions from CO2-EOR crude oil production in Western Canada and does not take upstream emissions from the capture and transport of CO2 into account.

Considering five different scenarios representing differing viewpoints the analysis attempts to quantify these various perspectives. The scenarios are presented such that they build upon each other.

The first scenario starts when a tonne of CO2 arrives on site and there is straight geological storage. As a second scenario there is an analysis of the stored CO2 at an EOR site as well as the onsite emissions. As a third scenario the full lifetime emissions for EOR are taken into account; this refers to the downstream emissions associated with the oil produced through EOR. And as fourth and fifth scenario the oil produced through EOR is assumed to displace other oil in the marketplace, this is done for both a barrel of oilsands crude and the average barrel in the North American market. In this step the full lifetime emissions of EOR plus the GHG savings of displacing oil in the market place are accounted for.

“There are multiple perspectives on how people view the GHG impact of CO2 -EOR,” notes Eric Beynon, Director of Strategy and Policy at ICO2N. “This is a unique study that aims to bring quantitative analysis to these perspectives to help support dialogue and stimulate discussion around this topic.”

As the impact of storing CO2 through EOR varies greatly depending on perspective and by project the analysis did not attempt to arrive at an absolute conclusion however the following high level conclusions were drawn out:

- When assuming oil produced through the EOR process fully displaces competing sources of crude oil, EOR has a GHG benefit.

- The ratio of CO2 injected to barrels of oil produced has a large impact on the overall GHG benefit of CO2-EOR.

- On a lifecycle GHG intensity basis and oil produced from EOR falls in between comparative North American sources of oil.

The Integrated CO2 Network provides technical, scientific and advocacy leadership surrounding the deployment of CCS worldwide and in Canada.

ICO2N


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