Canada invests in carbon capture

CALGARY, ALBERTA - The I-CAN Center for the Conversion of Carbon Dioxide received funding from the Canadian government and Natural Resources Canada.

Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources and Innoventures Canada jointly announced the funding at the Economic Club in Calgary.

"This project is a great example of our government's commitment to finding new and promising projects that will help take Canada to the next level of understanding carbon capture, storage and use," Lunn said. "It builds on our ecoEnergy Initiatives, including the Task Force announced (recently) by the Prime Minister. We are serious about delivering real results to Canadians and reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

NRCan is giving $100,000 to the project and additional funding will come from the government to start the first phase of the project. The I-CAN Center will focus on developing microalgae systems that capture up to 100 million tons of carbon dioxide. Microalgae can also be used as a biomass after it has been used to capture and store carbon. It can be converted and used as renewable natural gas, hydrogen and biofuels.

The I-CAN project is a joint project, developed by the Alberta Research Council, the Saskatchewan Research Council, Manitoba's Industrial Technology Center and an industrial research center in Quebec.