A consortium of Technip Energies, GE Vernova, contractor Balfour Beatty Group and Shell Catalysts & Technologies has been notified to proceed with the construction of the 742MW Net Zero Teesside Power project in North East England, which could become in one of the first gases on a commercial scale in the world. fire power plants with carbon capture and storage. The captured emissions will be injected under the North Sea for permanent storage.
Project owner NZT Power Ltd., made up of energy giants bp and Equinor, each with a 45% stake. and TotalEnergies with 10%, said it recently reached financial close on the project with work set to begin next year. The three companies are also part of the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP), which will develop the carbon pipeline and storage infrastructure.
UK Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho earlier this year approved the estimated $1.9 billion combined cycle power plant and related projects that will generate an estimated $5 billion in construction investment.
The UK government has committed more than $27 billion to projects over the net 25 years to capture and store carbon emissions from energy sources and heavy industry in the region. Teesside, located on the River Tees in England, is home to several industrial, energy and hydrogen production facilities. NZT Power and NEP form a key part of England’s East Coast Cluster, a UK initiative to decarbonise its industrial regions of Teesside and the Humber.
Technip Energies, GE Vernova, contractor Balfour Beatty Group and Shell Catalysts & Technologies have notice to proceed with a 742MW net-zero commercial power project at this location in the industrial area of Teesside, England, which will include capture and carbon storage. The captured emissions will be channeled for permanent storage under the North Sea
Credit: NZT Power Ltd
The projects will start in 2028, with an estimated 2 million tons of CO22 to be captured annually. Building the facility could create more than 3,000 construction jobs, the companies said, adding that the initiative is expected to attract private investment and help the UK reduce its carbon emissions by net zero by 2050.
Although the UK has no current commercial carbon capture and storage applications, the government has a target of capturing and storing 20 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030, says the London School of Economics and Political Science.
“Supporting the carbon capture industry will help revive industrial cores and boost investment in industrial communities like Teesside,” the UK government said in a statement. “Our industrial cores have been held back by 14 years of instability and low growth,” Prime said. Minister Keir Starmer said earlier this year: “The investment is proof that this government is taking a different approach… investing in the industries of the future.”
‘Cleaner and greener’
Technip Energies will lead the integration of a carbon capture system using its own technology and powered by Shell’s CANSOLV CO.2 capture system GE Vernova, the energy unit spun off in April from General Electric Corp., will install gas and steam turbines and related heat recovery and gas recirculation systems. Balfour Beatty will build the power plant and CCS systems. “Net Zero Teesside is a transformative project, underpinning the UK’s transition to cleaner and greener energy consumption which will drive economic growth in the North East,” said Leo Quinn, CEO of Balfour Beatty. Elise H. Nowee, president of Shell Catalysts & Technologies, added that the power. The plant is also designed to “provide flexibility to balance the grid when renewable energy sources such as wind or solar fall short.”
Several globally based engineering and construction companies have been awarded contracts for carbon capture and net zero projects. UK-based Costain leads the CO onshore2 gathering system and gas connection design, and the recently completed front-end engineering design at Teesside Power Station, while UK engineer Wood is leading integrated project management and Italy-based contractor Saipem will build the offshore pipeline and other facilities on land.
Technip, GE Vernova, Balfour Beatty and the Shell unit formed the Carbon Capture Alliance earlier this year, “deeply committed to long-term investment in the UK, with members already having a significant UK footprint and a mature UK supply chain,” they said. by announcing it.
The current carbon capture and storage effort, which began in 2020, follows two unsuccessful competitions in 2011 and 2015 to help commercialize the technology to power plants.
But the non-profit advocacy group Carbon Tracker has disputed the carbon savings, saying in a study reported in June that the project’s developers failed to report the level of CO2 emissions savings. NZT Power declined to comment at the time, but activist consultant Andrew Boswell sued in a UK court, challenging the government’s financial support for the project.
The British government has agreed to compensate the development team if the court blocks the project’s progress or revokes its notification to proceed, according to a Report of December 10 Financial Times. The publication said it gained access to key documents. Boswell’s claim was rejected by the UK’s highest court, but is due for an appeal hearing in March.
