The Navajo Transitional Energy Company (NTEC), a minority owner of the Four Corners Power Plant in New Mexico, has received $6.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to explore retrofitting the coal-fired power station with carbon capture technology.
The funding, provided by the DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), will support a Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) study that will help estimate project costs, timelines, and risks and will lay the groundwork for potential implementation.
NTEC owns about 13% of the Four Corners Power Plant, which operates seasonally and is set to close by 2031.
If carbon capture proves to be viable, NTEC plans to implement amine-based post-combustion technology to extract carbon dioxide (CO2) from the flue gas, potentially extending the plant’s operation beyond 2031, the company said in a statement last week.
Located on Navajo Nation land, the facility is vital to the region’s economy, particularly during peak energy demand periods for utilities like Arizona Public Service Company and Public Service Company of New Mexico.
Installing carbon capture technology could save over 600 jobs and prevent an annual economic loss of $183 million to the Navajo Nation.
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Vern Lund, NTEC’s CEO, emphasized the importance of the power plant and the associated Navajo Mine, which contribute over 35% of the Navajo Nation’s total revenue and provide more than 500 jobs for tribal members.
“We are excited by the opportunity to preserve these critical jobs and revenue for the Navajo Nation while significantly reducing carbon emissions and maintaining the reliability of power supply in the region,” the chief executive said.
NTEC expects the FEED study to be completed by 2025. However, acquiring full control of the plant depends on successful negotiations with other owners, an obstacle that derailed a similar project at the nearby San Juan Generating Station, the New Mexico Political Report said.
According to the news outlet, the DOE funding, provided under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, covers only half of the $13.1 million FEED study cost.
This award reflects OCED’s goal to mitigate risks in carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstrations and to drive substantial follow-up investments from the private sector for large-scale commercial CCS projects.
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