Shell, Statoil Announce Joint Energy Plan

Shell and Statoil announced a plan to use carbon dioxide to increase offshore oil recovery in the North Sea. Carbon dioxide (CO2) would be captured from power generation and pumped into an underground reservoir to enhance oil recovery, resulting in increased energy production with lower CO2 impact. The project was estimated to cost about $1.4 billion dollars. The project, due to be phased in between 2010 and 2012, comprises a gas-fired power plant and methanol production facility at Tjeldbergodden near Trondheim in central Norway, which would provide CO2 to the Draugen and Heidrun offshore oil and gas fields. Operations in the Draugen field began 1993 and production was projected to run through 2013. The new project could extend production several years. An estimated 2 to 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide could be stored every year in two fields. (Source: MC-News)