Your news this week: MP Benoit with recipients- Page 3 Lamont Bull-A-Rama - Page 7 Road concerns expressed- Page 9
www.LamontLeader.com
Vol. 9, No. 28, Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Energy Minister tours Shell Carbon Capture storage project Michelle Pinon Editor
Michelle Pinon Photos
Reporters and photographers got a fenceline view of Shell’s Carbon Capture Storage Project at the Scotford upgrader near Fort Saskatchewan. In the foreground is MP Mike Lake and Alberta Energy Minister Diana McQueen.
Tim Wiwchar, far right, llistens to Diana McQueen during the tour.
Alberta’s Energy Minister Diana McQueen showed her enthusiasm and expressed her excitement about Shell’s Carbon Capture Storage (CSS) project during a tour at the Scotford site on Thursday, April 17. Both McQueen and Mike Lake, MP for Edmonton-MillwoodsBeaumont, were on hand for the tour and to hear an update from company officials. One of those officials to give them, and the media an update on the $1.3 billion project that is nearly half-way complete, was Tim Wiwchar, business opportunity manager for Quest. “It’s really exciting times,” said Wiwchar, who is looking forward to getting the project up and running early in 2015. The project will capture and store underground more than one million tonnes of CO2 per year from the Scotford Upgrader, which began receiving bitumen from the Athabasca Oil Sands Project and converting it into synthetic crude which can in turn be refined into gas, jet fuel, crude oil and diesel since
2003. “Using Shell’s patented amine capture technology, the proposed Quest CCS Project will capture up to 35 per cent of the direct CO2 emissions produced during the upgrading process. The amount of CO2 that will be captured and stored is the equivalent to taking 175,000 vehicles off the road,” stated Wiwchar. Wiwchar explained that the CO2 will be compressed and transported in liquid form by approximately 60 km pipeline to three injection wells north of the upgrader near Thorhild. “One of the things we really focused on was involving stakeholders along the way,” pointed out Wiwchar, who said they plan to be commercially operational next year. “It’s a small, but important step in reducing CO2 emissions,” added Wiwchar. John Rhind, vice-president responsible for mineable oilsands with Shell, talked about the importance of Quest to the company and how it would enable them to increase production to 250,000 barrels per day. “It’s about growing capacity and opportunity...It (Quest) will also reduce our environmen-
tal impact.” Rhind added that it will enable Shell to continue to grow the upgrader into the future. “We’re looking to deploy technology that will require major investment decisions and how they fit in to our overall vision.” McQueen was quite impressed at the rate of development on the projject since it was first introduced four years ago, and was very excited that CCS project will join a handful of other similar projects operating throughout the world. McQueen and Lake both stressed the importance of the project here and abroad, and how the provincial and federal governments are working to meet energy challenges while reducing the overall environmental footprint. Both levels of government have committed $865 million in funding for the project. Once injection begins, the upgrader will be the first oil sands operation to implement CCS, and all parties are in agreement about its importance and value to the economy and the environment here in Alberta, throughout Canada and around the world.