Clean coal takes a step closer in Scotland

RENFREW, SCOTLAND - Doosan Babcock Energy Limited has announced the official launch of the world's largest OxyCoal firing demonstration project at its new facility in Renfrew, near Glasgow.

The company, part of the Doosan Group successfully demonstrated the clean combustion system, which is designed to cut emissions of carbon dioxide in coal-fired power plants.

The OxyCoal Clean Combustion Test Facility in Renfrew was demonstrated for the first time on a full-size 40-megawatts-thermal burner. OxyCoal combustion burns coal in an atmosphere of pure oxygen and recycled flue gas to give an output stream of concentrated carbon dioxide that can then be cleaned and piped away for injection into underground stores. Doosan Babcock says the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology will be suitable for installation in new or existing coal power plants.

The £7.4 million project is a collaboration between Doosan Babcock and Scottish and Southern Energy plc, alongside a group of seven sponsors that includes UK utility Drax Group plc, DONG Energy A/S, Electricite de France SA, E.ON AG, Scottish Power Limited, Air Products plc and Sweden's Vattenfall AB. The UK government and UK Coal plc are also involved.

Just last month, Scottish Power turned on the UK's first CCS system, which was installed at a working coal-fired power plant located in Longannet, Fife, on Scotland's east coast.

"Cleaning up coal power is a must if we're to meet our climate change goals whilst keeping the lights on," said Joan Ruddock, the Minister of State for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), which opened the facility. "The development of CCS offers high-quality jobs and export opportunities for the UK, which is why we're supporting this OxyCoal project with £2.2 million of funding. Our proposals on coal are some of the most radical in the world and will help ensure the UK leads the way on CCS."

Doosan Babcock is convinced that the project marks a milestone in CCS development and will help the UK secure its fair share of the predicted £2 billion-£4 billion-a-year global CCS market by 2030.

"The OxyCoal project places Doosan Babcock at the forefront of carbon capture development, and we are delighted to acknowledge the positive high level endorsement of the project by DECC and our sponsors," said Iain Miller, CEO of Doosan Babcock. "With our product portfolio now including both OxyCoal and Post Combustion Capture technologies, Doosan Babcock will be ready to deliver very low-emission power technology to our customers around the world as fast as the market for these products becomes available."

Ian Marchant, Chief Executive of Scottish and Southern Energy, commented: "The Low Carbon Transition PlanÂ… sets a great deal of store by the successful deployment of carbon capture and storage technology. The pace of progress in recent years has been disappointing, but I hope that renewed impetus from government, allied to the type of co-operation evident in the OxyCoal project, will bring us closer to the ultimate goal of successful deployment of large-scale carbon capture and storage technology here in the UK and elsewhere."

The OxyCoal-fired plant retains a full air-firing capability, which Doosan maintains minimises the "commercial risk of the early adoption of the technology."

Related News

broken power lines

Canadian Scientists say power utilities need to adapt to climate change

TORONTO - The increasing intensity of storms that lead to massive power outages highlights the need for Canada’s electrical utilities to be more robust and innovative, climate change scientists say.

“We need to plan to be more resilient in the face of the increasing chances of these events occurring,” University of New Brunswick climate change scientist Louise Comeau said in a recent interview.

The East Coast was walloped this week by the third storm in as many days, with high winds toppling trees and even part of a Halifax church steeple. Nova Scotia Power says it has weathered nine storm days so…

READ MORE
coal power plant smoke

Carbon emissions fall as electricity producers move away from coal

READ MORE

A general view of the Williams Gas Pipeline Transco tankers seen along the Hackensack River,

Nonstop Records For U.S. Natural-Gas-Based Electricity

READ MORE

Most Energy Will Come From Fossil Fuels, Even In 2040

READ MORE

power bill

N.S. senior suspects smart meter to blame for shocking $666 power bill

READ MORE