Carbon capture price talks begin

Masdar, the Abu Dhabi renewable energy firm, has begun talks over the prices it will charge for gathering smokestack emissions.

Masdar, the Abu Dhabi renewable energy firm, has begun negotiating with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) on a fair price to charge for carbon dioxide it gathers from industrial smokestacks, but will not be able to determine a final figure until next year, a top company official said yesterday. Masdar has plans to capture 6.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide at four sites across Abu Dhabi and sell them to ADNOC for injection into ageing onshore oil wells.

The network should be operational by 2014, said Sam Nader, the head of the carbon management unit at Masdar. "We have a solid date, as we enjoy the full backing of our political leadership." Front end engineering and design on the project was due for completion by the first quarter of next year, he added. In addition to reducing the emirate's emissions of greenhouse gases, injections of carbon dioxide will increase oil output and replace scarce natural gas that is currently left in the wells to maintain pressure.

The sale price to ADNOC would need to reflect the cost of the chemical process for capturing emissions at two natural gas-fired power stations in Taweelah, which put out a lower proportion of carbon dioxide than coal or oil, Mr Nader said. Masdar would also need to construct kilometres of pipeline to transport the gas to oilfields in Al Gharbia. The two other sites include the Emirates Steel Industries plant in Musaffah, and a hydrogen power plant that Masdar is building in partnership with Hydrogen Energy. Emissions from both plants will be close to pure carbon dioxide, making it technically easier to capture.