Carbon Capture

Whitecap Resources Inks MOU for Carbon Capture Storage

Share Print Bookmark    |    Monday,October 25,2021

Whitecap Resources Inc. has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL) to use Whitecap’s expertise in carbon capture utilization and storage (“CCUS”) to assist FCL in achieving their emissions targets in Saskatchewan.

The MOU contemplates the capture of CO2 by FCL from the Co-op Refinery Complex in Regina and the Co-op Ethanol Complex near Belle Plaine, Saskatchewan, which would then be compressed, transported and sequestered by Whitecap. Carbon dioxide sequestration will be performed by Whitecap as part of the Weyburn unit CO2 Enhanced Oil Recovery operations or by injecting into a new saline storage facility.

The resulting infrastructure and CO2 supply handling capability would support Weyburn unit expansions as well as enable other operators to pursue greenfield CO2 EOR operations in Southeast Saskatchewan. Further, this project enables the potential for significant investment in carbon capture at other industrial sites in the Belle Plaine, Moose Jaw and Regina areas.

As operator, Whitecap currently sequesters 2 million tonnes of CO2 annually in the Weyburn unit, and the FCL Project supports the capture of nearly 500,000 tonnes of additional industrial CO2 emissions per year. The Weyburn unit is the world’s largest anthropogenic carbon sequestration project, having stored over 36 million tonnes of CO2 since its first injection in the year 2000.

Whitecap CEO Grant Fagerheim said: “The pathway to a lower carbon economy is through carbon capture and we are excited to partner with FCL to support their plans for decarbonization. The Government of Saskatchewan has taken a leadership role for CCUS, most recently with its announcement on September 7, 2021, and their support, along with that of the Petroleum Technology Research Centre, CCS Knowledge Centre and the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources, will allow the FCL Project to meet its environmental goals and provide significant economic benefits to the Province of Saskatchewan.”

FCL CEO Scott Banda added: “The transition to a low-carbon economy is one of the largest, but most necessary, shifts we’ll have to make in our long history. Carbon capture and the work we’re doing with Whitecap is just one of multiple paths we’re exploring as part of a strategic plan to integrate sustainable solutions into our operations to improve environmental performance.”

Energy and Resources Minister Bronwyn Eyre said: “Today’s announcement firmly positions Saskatchewan as a world leader in innovative carbon capture technology and is just the beginning of significant private investment opportunities in the CO2 sequestration value chain. This proposed project will include CO2 enhanced oil recovery, which lowers GHG emissions by 82 per cent compared to traditional extraction methods while increasing production. This is good news for the environment and the economy.”

Whitecap’s New Energy team will be initiating a Front-End Engineering and Design (“FEED”) study to provide centralized compression, transportation and sequestration for the FCL Project. The presence of large scale CO2 injection capacity for EOR at Weyburn creates a unique opportunity to minimize up front sequestration costs and to improve the economics of future carbon capture projects for our industrial partners. FCL expects carbon capture facilities to be completed at the Co-op Ethanol Complex in 2024 and the Co-op Refinery Complex in 2026.