Carbon dioxide production from coal-fired power plants for enhanced oil recovery: A feasibility study in Western Canada

In order to sustain the current production capacity of conventional oil in Western Canada, enhanced oil recovery (EOR) technologies must be increasingly applied. Among these, CO2 flooding is a highly attractive alternative. A large amount of CO2 is being produced by coal-fired power plants in this region. The CO2 is currently discharged into the atmosphere and could be a major contributor to the greenhouse effect, which may lead to global warming. Thus, the concept of capturing CO2 and utilizing it as a flooding agent in EOR processes is currently generating much interest among oil, utility and coal companies. We demonstrate how cogeneration concepts, together with process-optimization strategies, help to reduce the CO2-production cost by utilizing low-pressure steam and waste heat from various sections of the power-generation process. Based on these concepts and strategies, results from this study show that the recovery cost of CO2 from a coal-fired power plant may range between $0.50 and 2.00/mscf. If the cost is approximately $1.25/mscf, the production cost of a barrel of incremental oil would be less than $18. Therefore, even at todayʹs modest oil prices, there is room for profit to be made operating a CO2 flood with flue-gas-extracted CO2. The technical and economical feasibility of the concepts are evaluated and the practical implications for the Saskatchewan resources are discussed.