Company/Alliance: Stanwell Corporation, a Queensland Government owned corporation, together with EPRI, Shell, MBA Petroleum Consultants, Resource Land Management Services, GE Energy and Upstream Petroleum
Location: Stanwell Energy Park, 29km west of Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia
Feedstock: Coal
Size: 100 MW, 420,000 tonnes of CO2 per year captured and stored
Capture Technology: IGCC/ Pre-combustion
CO2 Fate: Sequestration in deep saline aquifers in the Northern Denison Trough near Emerald, approximately 220 km from plant
Timing: Drilling Investigation Program (2006), Environmental Impact Statement submitted (2007), construction (2008), initial commissioning (2010), demonstration (2012). Full scale plant (2017)
Motivation/Economics: The Queensland government earmarked $300 million from the Queensland Future Growth Fund to develop clean coal technology. The project was transferred in March 2007 to the Queensland Department of Premier and Cabinet to help with funding and regulatory approvals. Shell signed an agreement with Stanwell to provide technical expertise during the test drilling operation and will receive an offer of 10% equity in the project. The carbon capture rate is 75% on the demonstration project and 90% from the large-scale plant.
Comments: ZeroGen will drill two wells in the Northern Denison Trough to determine the geological suitability of area to store carbon dioxide underground. The first well that went to a depth of 1.5 km was completed in July 2006. Zerogen recieved backing from the WWF,
Project Link: ZeroGen Project Website
Other Sources and Press Release:
ZeroGen Project Partners
Media coverage of ZeroGen project
ZeroGen press release of large-scale plant by 2017 (March 2008)
Australian Coal Association funds ZeroGen (March 2008)
ZeroGen achieves global distinction (September 2006)
Queensland to stage world-first clean coal power plant (July 2006)
World-first clean coal project a step closer [PDF] (July 2006)
