The Norwegian government and Statoil are planning to establish what they claim w ...

The Norwegian government and Statoil are planning to establish what they claim will be the world's largest full-scale carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage (CCS) project, in conjunction with a planned combined heat and power (CHP) plant at Mongstad, Norway. The CCS project is to be fully operational by the end of 2014, with the first stage of the project in place at the start-up of the proposed cogeneration facility in 2010. The first stage will capture at least 100,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. In connection with the agreement, the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment has awarded Statoil an emissions permit, which stipulates that development of a full-scale CCS power plant must proceed in parallel with the construction of the cogeneration plant. Surplus electricity from the CHP facility will be sold to the Troll A petroleum field. Other offshore installations in the North Sea could also benefit from the electricity from Mongstad. Electricity production from the plant will be 2.3 TWh and heat production will be 2.8 TWh per year. The cogeneration plant will operate at a very high energy efficiency, in the longer term up to 80%. By comparison, traditional gas-fired power plants have an energy efficiency of between 58% and 59%.