Alberta commits C$30mn to accelerate carbon capture
The government of Alberta said January 14 it would commit C$30mn (US$24mn) to accelerate the development of industrial scale carbon capture and transportation solutions in the Canadian province.
The funding, drawn from Alberta’s Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) fund, will support Emissions Reduction Alberta’s (ERA) Carbon Capture Kickstart: Design and Engineering call, which is intended to fill key gaps, drive partnerships and innovation, and accelerate project financing and deployment.
“Carbon capture is necessary to reach large-scale reduction of CO2 emissions,” Alberta environment minister Jason Nixon said. “The Carbon Capture Kickstart investment will create shared learnings and provide valuable insights to industry, government, and other stakeholders about the economic and emissions reduction potential of this critical technology in Alberta.”
The Carbon Capture Kickstart funding competition supports pre-construction design and engineering and is focused on site-specific carbon capture, direct air capture, and carbon transportation infrastructure.
Proposals can address solutions across all industrial sectors – power generation, cement production, manufacturing, oil and gas, and more – but must target specific large final emitter sites in the province. Carbon levies assessed to large emitters are used to fund Alberta’s TIER fund.
“On the path to net-zero emissions, carbon capture will be a key pillar of the effort to transform how we produce and use energy,” ERA CEO Steve MacDonald said. “By incenting collaboration and helping to build the case for investment, this funding creates momentum for further technology development and applications.”
Under the Kickstart programme, ERA will contribute up to 50% of a project’s cost to a maximum of C$7.5mn. It will also identify opportunities to leverage funding for this call with support from other funding agencies.
Deadline for applications is March 3, 2022 at 5 pm MST. Programme details are available on the ERA website.