As of September 30, 2016, the Carbon Capture and Sequestration Technologies program at MIT has closed. The website is being kept online as a reference but will not be updated.

ZeroGen Fact Sheet: Carbon Dioxide Storage Project

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: Original location Stanwell Energy Park, 29km west of Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia

Feedstock: Coal

Size: 2 Mt/yr

Capture Technology: IGCC/ pre-combustion

CO2 Fate: Original timing - Stage 1: Sequestration in deep saline aquifers in the Northern Denison Trough near Emerald, approximately 220 km from plant. Stage 2: CCS, exact location TBD

Timing: Project has been cancelled. Original timing - Drilling investigation program (2006), Environmental impact statement submitted (2007), commissioning (2010), demonstration (2015), full scale plant (2020).

Motivation/Economics:

Total cost $4.3 billion. 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.

Comments:

The Queensland government has scrapped ZeroGen and has given the project to the industry run Australian Coal Association's Low Emission Technologies. The State will write off the $96.3 million as a loss and the remaining $6.2 million will be given as a grant to the Australian Coal Association. The Australian Federal Government attacked the decision saying it has lost a contribution of $47.5 million for a feasibility study. The Government was advised to withdraw from ZeroGen after a report described it as "speculative". In October 2011, the main company behind the ZeroGen project was placed in liquidation. This confirms that ZeroGen is officially cancelled.

ZeroGen chairman Dr. Kelly Thambimuthu quit in protest after the Queensland government's decision (December 2010).

Project Link: ZeroGen Project website

Other Sources and Press Releases:
Clean coal project in liquidation (October 2010)
State Government drops ZeroGen (December 2010)
ZeroGen chief quits over government sidelining of project (December 2010)
Mitsubishi is to build IGCC plant (June 2009)
ZeroGen successfully drills and tests 2 wells (September 2007)