Phase II Final Report from the Task Force for Review and Identification of Standards for CO 2 Storage Capacity Estimation

Task Force was created to review and identify standards for CO2 storage capacity estimation. Force has previously issued a Phase I report (in August 2005) which served to document the nature of the problem such as the relationship between assessment scale and the level of detail and resolution of the storage capacity. This report of the Task Force's Phase II activities summarizes the Phase I findings and provides suggested methodologies for the estimation of CO2 storage capacity in three types of geologic structures: uneconomic coal beds, oil and gas reservoirs, and deep saline aquifers. Executive Summary Implementation of CO 2 capture and geological storage (CCGS) technology at the scale needed to achieve a significant and meaningful reduction in CO 2 emissions requires knowledge of the available CO 2 storage capacity. Previous attempts to assess CO 2 storage capacity used a variety of approaches and methodologies, and data sets of variable size and quality, resulting in widely varying estimates of inconsistent quality and reliability. CO 2 storage capacity can be conceptualized as a resource pyramid, in which the degree of geological and economic uncertainty associated with a capacity estimate is represented by its place on the pyramid. In essence, the best-known and highest quality capacity is placed at the apex of the pyramid and the poorly known and/or poor quality capacity is placed at its base. Theoretical storage capacity, which is defined as the physical limit of what the geological system can accept, is represented by the entire pyramid. The effective storage capacity is a subset of the theoretical capacity and is obtained by applying a range geological and engineering cutoff limits to a storage capacity assessment. The practical storage capacity is that subset of the effective capacity that is obtained by considering other technical, legal and regulatory, infrastructure and economic barriers to CO 2 geological storage. The matched storage capacity is that subset of the practical capacity that is obtained by detailed matching of large stationary CO 2 sources with geological storage sites that are adequate in terms of capacity, injectivity and supply rate. CO 2 storage capacity assessments may be conducted at a variety of scales. The country-scale assessment is a high level of assessment performed for a contiguous geographic area defined by national jurisdiction. The basin-scale assessment is a more detailed level of assessment focusing on a particular sedimentary basin. The regional-scale assessment is performed at an increasing …