CCUS Commercial Deployment: What Will It Take to Make It Happen?
The University of Houston’s Center for Carbon Management in Energy (CCME) as well as the Division of Energy and Innovation hosted a timely symposium, titled “CCUS Commercial Deployment: What Will It Take to Make It Happen?,” to explore the infrastructure, electricity, geological and water challenges along with workforce and supply chain considerations in Houston and the surrounding region.
Attended by representatives of academia and industry, as well as future decision-makers, the symposium centered on a white paper, “CCUS Infrastructure: Preparing for the Future of Houston,” commissioned by the Houston CCS Alliance and the Houston Energy Transition Initiative. The paper shares numerous scenarios geared toward achieving net-zero goals. Additionally, panelists discussed real-world success stories and lessons learned on the road to broad commercial CCUS deployment.
“We hope this can be something foundational to [the energy industry’s] strategic planning, its view of the future and the alternatives associated with it,” said Charles McConnell, energy center officer at CCME and lead author of the white paper. “CCUS, without pipeline infrastructure and the ability to do it, is not going to be commercially deployed. Every company (in the CCS Alliance) has an oar in the water in terms of making it happen.”
McConnell’s overview of the white paper was followed by a pair of panel discussions. Firstly, a case study took place of ongoing construction of ADM’s first-of-its-kind power and steam facility in Decatur, Ill. The panel, moderated by McConnell, included Fred Eames, partner at Hunton Andrews Kurth; Jon Wiens, CEO of Warwick Carbon Solutions; Colin Graves, vice president of innovation at ADM; and Matt Murphy, senior consultant with Mac Strategies.
Discussion then pivoted to pipeline challenges. Panelists were Nic Medina, public and government affairs manager with ExxonMobil; Dan Cole, former executive with Denbury; Elizabeth Worrell, managing director and chief legal counsel with the Pipeline Contractors Association; Stephen Lee, EVP of E&C at Navigator CO2; and moderator Cindy Yeilding, director with Denbury and former senior vice president with BP America.