Carbon Capture and Storage: the QUEST Project

Abstract

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has been identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA) as a technology that will play a crucial role in reducing CO₂ emissions to the atmosphere. In Canada, Shell, on behalf of the Athabasca Oil Sands Project venture (Shell Canada Energy, Chevron Canada Limited, Marathon Oil Canada Corporation), announced in September 2012 that it was proceeding to construct the Quest Carbon Capture and Storage project. QUEST will capture more than one million tonnes of CO₂ per year from the Scotford oil sands bitumen Upgrader located near Edmonton, Alberta, reducing the direct CO₂ emissions from the Upgrader by up to 35%. The captured CO₂ will be injected into the Basal Cambrian Sandstone, a deep saline aquifer located at a depth of about 2 km below ground surface, over a potential time period of 25 years. Quest is the first large-scale commercial application of carbon capture and storage technology at an oil sands operation. An important part of the QUEST project is its Measurement, Monitoring and Verification (MMV) plan to demonstrate containment and conformance of the injected CO₂. The aim of this presentation is to provide an overview of the QUEST project with a focus on: • Site selection and characterization • Measurement Monitoring and Verification plan to address containment and conformance of the injected CO₂. [note: additional authors may be added]

AAPG Datapages/Search and Discovery Article #90259 ©2016 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, June 19-22, 2016