Fortum Dumps its $500 Million Carbon Capture and Storage Project

[Nathanael]

How feasible and trustworthy do you think CCS is?


Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, the hotly debated technology advocated as a way to produce "clean coal", has taken a hit as Fortum and Teollisuuden Voima (TVO) have decided to abandon their EUR$500 million demonstration project in Finland.

After conducting several studies, Fortum decided to pull the plug on its large-scale CCS demonstration plant. The company cited the technological and financial risks associated with the project as the main variables influencing its decision.

Link: http://www.energyboom.com/emerging/fortum-dumps-its-500-million-carbon-capture-and-storage-project

[NNadir]

1. What a surprise! I'm shocked, shocked I tell you. Recommended. n/t

[Nathanael]

2. Failing

It seems to me, although not an expert in the field, that the CCS demonstration projects for coal power plants have largely been failures. Are there any out there which are operating successfully? When I look at the technology there are a lot of questions, and frankly I think the money could be spent on more sound and safe energy technology.

[wtmusic]

3. CCS is doomed to failure

by one simple principle: it's expensive and can easily be circumvented in an undetectable manner.

[txlibdem]

5. CCS is definitely doomed to failure

Exactly where are they going to PUT all of that CO2 so that it will NEVER leak out or (is an earthquake or other catastrophe) escape back into the atmosphere? The sheer VOLUME of CO2 we produce each year is staggering. We'd need a repository the size of Yucca mountain every year at least.

The only thing I can see logically to do with it is to put an algae biofuels or algae bioplastics factory next door to the power plant - use the CO2 to grow the algae and the waste heat to facilitate the algae production.

[wtmusic]

6. IMO it would never even get that far.

They would sell industry on some kind of elaborate mechanism, which converts CO2 into some mysterious substance, using a very expensive process.

Then when the sun goes down they blow all of the CO2 into the night sky, and pocket the money. No one would be the wiser for it.

[Radical Activist]

7. Or they could sell "some" of the CO2 on the market

for other purposes. They can make a profit off of that too. That's the plan for the Tenaska CCS/IGCC project proposed in Taylorville Illinois.

[NNadir]

10. I oppose all coal plants but you may be on to something here. I believe that captive CO2 could...

...in theory be used to phase out dangerous oil as the first dangerous fossil fuel to be abandoned.

I wrote about the technology for doing this on another website where I sometimes write. http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/6/17/19109/0486">The Utility of Light: Getting Real with the Existing Energy Infrastructure.

[pscot]

4. It always seemed like a longshot

Still, it's unpleasant to have the bad news confirmed.

[txlibdem]

9. "I feel ya"

Is what I would say were I not the whitest guy in Texas (but my heart's in the right place so...)

CCS is just another in a long, long line of BS that the dirty fossil industries throw out there periodically to keep us off track. The domestic oil producers convinced poor, stupid, foolish, simple minded then-President Reagan that we could drill our way out of dependence on foreign oil if only he would scrap environmental regulations and gave tax credits, etc., to the oil industry. Simpleton that he was, he bought it hook, line and sinker. But 30 years later, where are we? TWICE as dependent on foreign oil as we were in 1980 (at least). Gosh, I guess getting rid of regulations and giving tax cuts to the rich didn't do what they said it would. Who knew?

We're playing their game right now. They hold all the cards. Every time you pull up to the pump you are giving them money to pay for lobbyists so they can continue to scoop huge buckets of cash out of the American tax payers' pockets and continue their little con game. One of these days we're all going to say "I've had it with Coal and Oil."

As soon as the majority of Americans and businesses are driving electric vehicles, however, I'll feel a lot better about our prospects to survive as a species. I have made myself a promise that the fossil fuel burner vehicle we have now is going to be the last we will ever buy. Our next vehicle will be an electric vehicle. When our Highlander croaks (it's now at 70k miles) we're buying an electric to replace it. That's my little part in freeing America from the grip of fossil fuel dependence.

PS, I've already switched my electricity to 100% renewables (an option from my power company, call yours and see if they have options for using more renewable energy).

[Radical Activist]

8. Huge waste of money and time.