Good news for Weyburn Unit, Whitecap, SaskPower, Weyburn and Estevan:
Whitecap Resources to buy CO2 from SaskPower until 2035, providing market for SaskPower’s BD3.
I did some in-depth analysis on the broader picture on all this, especially how carbon pricing in the US and Canada affect the economics.
Remember, the CO2 is used for enhanced oil recovery, dramatically extending the life of an oilfield that has now been producing over 65 years. And FYI, my kid found work with a oilfield company that’s worked in the Weyburn Unit for 62 years, give or take. I hope she can make a career there as a heavy duty mechanic.
A while ago I pointed out on Gormley that lower oil prices were definitely going to have an impact on Saskatchewan’s finances. I was right, as finances are down a half billion from budget.
Also, the feds just dished out $30 million for 1500 EV chargers in Quebec. Because of course they did.
So let’s see here, the federal government, with our tax dollars, have dished out money for EV manufacturers, battery plants, rebates on the EVs themselves, and now chargers. Is there anything they’ve missed? Maybe you get a car! And you get a car! Might have to do a column on this.
And, on the topic of the feds, after slow walking its construction for years, all of a sudden there’s a serious panic to get the Trans Mountain Pipeline complete and operating. Well, from what I understand, good luck with that.
She working for Mainil?
Ding ding ding! We have a winner.
“Also, the feds just dished out $30 million for 1500 EV chargers in Quebec.”
$20,000 per charger? There’s gold in them thar chargers!
Question
If electric cars are the future, why aren’t the big gas station/convenience store chains installing car charging systems on their properties? They serve a similar purpose as gas pumps. The property already has at least 120/240, if not three phase electric service, and since charging takes a while, customers will have plenty of time to shop in their very high margin convenience store. They should be able to get the government to subsidize the capital costs too. They can put the chargers on the periphery of the lot in existing parking spaces.
The corporation even gets credit for environmental awareness and being “Green” too.
It sounds like a win-win to me?
I wonder about that myself, a lot. In Saskatchewan, Tesla has been building out their superchargers, usually six per location, sometimes eight. In Regina, they have I think 8 – in the whole city – way out in the parking lot of a Canadian Tire. Some restaurants are relatively nearby, but no washroom, no convenience store. Estevan – six chargers behind a mall, but with poor entrances to the mall. So yes, you can go in the mall, but there’s no food court there. And its hours are limited, especially in the morning and evening. Whitewood, it’s at the Co-op gas station, which is a full convenience store, like you say. Same at Davidson. North Battleford, mall parking lot similar situation to Estevan, except there is a Co-op gas station 100 m away you can use the washrooms or convenience store. Brandon, Manitoba, it’s in a parking lot for a shopping complex without any convenience stores nearby. There is a Safeway, mattress store and furniture store near. So they’ve obviously been working with Co-op. When I think to fuelling up, the very first thing on my mind is bathrooms, then a pop. And if you’ve to to spend the better part of an hour, those would certainly be even more significant.
As for power – you need MASSIVE power installed, way beyond your usual power for a commercial building. Six tesla superchargers, running at the same time, can draw two megawatts of power. 350 kilowatts x 6 = 2.1 megawatts. And just so you know, SaskPower likes to use the metric that 1 megawatt can power 1000 homes. You see it in all their communications.
“the CO2 is used for enhanced oil recovery”
Is CO2 the cheapest option?
CO2 allows you to get roughly another 20 per cent of the original oil in place out of the ground. It roughly doubles the volume of oil you can extract over time. That’s like doubling the yield of a wheat crop, or output of a gold or potash mine. It’s hugely significant, and thus worth the dollars, especially because you can take advantage of the sunk costs of extracting the first 20 per cent. Just continue on, as is happening at Weyburn.
And more importantly, it can be applied in many, if not most, oilfields where the formation is deeper than 1000 metres. Which means, if we put carbon capture on all our coal facilities, and used it for enhanced oil recovery, it could dramatically extend the life of numerous oilfields in Saskatchewan.
You are missing what I’m asking… CO2 isn’t the only option available, therefore, is CO2 the cheapest option compared to other options that are available? and of course the other question is it the most efficient option?
What other options are you thinking? Other gases have been used in enhanced oil, like propane, butane, methane. Methane re-injection is common for offshore oil, I believe. Both otherwise, what else would we have in volume that could be used in this manner? And if you could sell butane for X, why would you pump it underground again?
CO2 at high pressure acts as a solvent, washing the oil from the rock and causing it to swell, thus leave the rock and flow into the well. Does anything else do this? I don’t know for sure. But those properties make it worth using, and paying for. There is a cost – it becomes highly corrosive. Most of your above-ground systems have to be stainless steel, not carbon steel piping.
Would Nitrogen work?
I can sort of imagine what would happen if you used plain old air or oxygen. The question is whether it would happen underground or in the pipes full of extracted petroleum?
There are several technologies available, at least some are using either Polymer Injection or High Pressure steam. I’m not arguing against it, I’m just trying to see if the decision was made on this was the best/cheapest choice or on the basis of “because we are sequestering CO2 this gives us social license to pump out more oil” which of course won’t stop the Cult Fanatic that’s in charge of the federal Ministry of “climate change” from continuing to attack oil and gas…
Different oil reservoirs respond in different ways. It depends on the original viscosity and other characteristics of the oil, the depth of the reservoir, original drive mechanism and pore structure of the reservoir, the boundary conditions of the reservoir (top and bottom seal, trapping scenario…). At Weyburn, the Midale reservoir has responded to the CO2 flood in a very good way. The original unit was a waterflood for many years after the initial pressure was depleted. Now there is a combination CO2 and water flood, which provides an efficient sweep that produces oil that would never have been produced with only a water flood. Other enhanced recovery schemes may use expensive solvents that are harder to separate and re-use. Natural gas is sometimes used for pressure maintenance, but it is a product in its own right, so better to sell it.
CO2 will likely be used to extend the life of shale gas reservoirs as it can be adsorbed by the shale and displace adsorbed methane, as well as maintaining pressure.
The use of CO2 in enhanced oil recovery is probably the most significant of all uses or ways to sequester CO2.
Very good explanation. Obviously you’ve worked with this.
As for the nitrogen question, my guess is, if it worked, it would be commonplace and widespread, since nitrogen is something like 70% of the atmosphere. Since this is not happening, I would think it does not work in that manner.
CO2 is not a problem, stupid people are.
” buying CO2″
So this is the new scam?
The Weyburn Unit has been buying CO2 for 23 years to dramatically increase the life and productivity of its oilfield. That’s no scam. That’s producing hard dollars.
And I guess I should say, this is not buying carbon credits a la unicorn farts. This is buying actual compressed gas in a pipeline, delivered to the site, and pumped underground. I’ve been to both ends of that pipeline and reported on the process extensively. It does, indeed, work as advertised.
Stooge for the man! Who pays when the companies don’t?
The suckers!
“companies undertaking in-house CCS activity shall receive Investment Tax Allowance of 100% for 10 years, full import duty and sales tax exemption on the equipment used for CCS technology from 2023 to 2027, and tax deduction for pre-commencement expenses within 5 years from the start of operations;
companies undertaking CCS services shall receive Investment Tax Allowance of 100% for 10 years, full import duty and sales tax exemption on equipment for CCS technology from 2023 to 2027, and tax exemption of 70% on statuary income for 10 years. In addition, a tax deduction is also given for service fees incurred,”
https://www.iea.org/policies/17250-tax-incentive-for-carbon-capture-storage
Read your own link, please. “In 2023, the _Malaysian_ Government proposed a tax incentive for Carbon Capture and Storage ….”
That would quite literally be on the other side of the planet. A long ways to build a pipeline.
Same shite different pile.
https://ccsknowledge.com/pub/Publications/CCS%20ITC%20Overview.pdf
Horseshit half measure, sellout, bull shit, roll over nonsense.. I’m so glad you have been permitted to regulate cow farts..