Decarbonization efforts are making progress in North Dakota, and some neighboring states. Summit Carbon Solutions announced on March 2nd that the oil and gas company Continental Resources is making a strategic investment in the largest carbon capture and sequestration project – the Iowa CO2 pipeline.
Relevant: New 2,000 Mile Carbon Capture And Storage Pipeline Is On The Horizon
The investment is for the sum of $250 million over the next two years that are allocated to fund the development and construction of the project’s associated capture, transportation, and sequestration infrastructure. The company will also leverage its operational and geologic expertise to help ensure the safe and secure storage of CO2.
“We believe this project will become a model for the rest of the world… We are excited to take part in this world-class, world-scale project. It was an obvious thing for Continental to participate in,” said Continental Resources CEO Bill Berry.
The Iowa pipeline will collect CO2 from 31 partner ethanol facilities that want to reduce the carbon footprint of their operations. The initial pipeline capacity is 12 million metric tons per year (MMtpa) of CO2 emissions, and expansion capabilities are projected to handle up to 20 MMtpa.
The ethanol plants that have committed to the service of the CO2 pipeline are located across North Dakota, South Dekota, Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska. The pipeline is 2000 miles long and pumps the gathered CO2 for storage underground in North Dakota.
Summit Carbon Solutions started developing plans for the project in 2019 and attracted partnerships with ethanol producers. The initiative was launched in early 2021, and is on track to achieve its target of being operational in the first half of 2024.
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“Our goal since launching Summit Carbon Solutions has been to accelerate ethanol’s path to becoming a net zero carbon fuel, which can be done in the near term and with proven technology… To accomplish that, we first partnered with forward-thinking ethanol producers, and we now look forward to working with Continental Resources, which has unmatched experience and knowledge of the Williston Basin in North Dakota, where we will permanently sequester our partner plants’ CO2,” said Justin Kirchhoff, President of Summit Ag Investors.
The investment from Continental Resources will support the development plans of the carbon capture infrastructure project that is supposed to make a difference in the carbon emissions of the industry across those states.
