Japan-based Marubeni Corporation and Electric Power Development will each invest $10 million in Glencore’s CTSCo Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Project in Queensland.
Both Marubeni and J-POWER are long term joint venture partners in Glencore’s mining operations in Australia.
The Project aims to demonstrate carbon capture and storage technology, focusing on capturing CO2 from the Millmerran coal-fired power station and permanently storing it deep underground in a dedicated storage site 100 kilometres from the power station.
CTSCo has the potential to store significant volumes of CO2 to reduce existing and future sources of industrial emissions, which could improve energy security for the national electricity market, maintain and grow jobs in regional Queensland and enable future industries including hydrogen production, while also contributing to Australian and Queensland Government climate and emission reduction goals.
A comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement for the Project is currently in progress, working towards the commencement of CO2 injection in 2025.
Marubeni’s Materials Group chief executive officer Jun Horie said the company was delighted to participate in the first CCS project in Australia to capture CO2 from a coal-fired power plant.
“CCS is an important technology in enabling a carbon neutral economy worldwide, not to mention Japan. We hope to bring back what we learn from this project to contribute to the industry’s emission reduction goals.”
Glencore’s Global Coal Assets head Earl Melamed said the practical application of CCS and the technology would contribute to decarbonisation in Australia and all over the world as well.
“CTSCo is one of the most advanced onshore CCS projects in Australia and has the potential to store significant volumes of CO2 from a number of industries while playing an important role in deploying this critical emission reduction technology and bringing down its costs. Marubeni and J-POWER are long-term investors in the Australian resources sector and their involvement in our project further highlights the potential for CCS to materially reduce emissions in Queensland.”