The US government has announced a new approach to its FutureGen project, scrapping the idea of a single, near-zero emissions demonstration plant in favour of the construction of several commercial clean coal plants with carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities.
Citing technological advancements of the last five years, US secretary of energy Samual W. Bodman said that the restructured approach would be an “all-round better investment”. The new strategy is expected to at least double the amount of carbon dioxide sequestered compared to the earlier FutureGen concept.
The announcement comes just a few weeks after the FutureGen Alliance announced that it had chosen a site in Illinois to host the 275 MW FutureGen plant. The Alliance, which includes some of the world’s largest coal companies and electric utilities, says that it still plans to continue developing the plant.
The US government wants to achieve its FutureGen goals by asking industry to develop integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plants. It will provide funding for the addition of CCS technology to these plants.
“As technological advancements have been realized in the last five years, we are eager to demonstrate CCS technology on commercial plants that when operational, will be the cleanest coal-fired plants in the world,” said Bodman. “Each of these plants will sequester at least one million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually and help meet our nation’s rapidly growing energy demand.”
Four sites evaluated as part of the FutureGen site selection process, including the Mattoon, Illinois, site that was finally chosen, may be eligible to host an IGCC plant with CCS under this new approach, says the DoE.
“It will take four to five years for DoE to evaluate new proposals, place contracts, and conduct environmental reviews for new projects. FutureGen has crossed these hurdles and is positioned for success,” said FutureGen Alliance CEO Michael J Mudd. “The Alliance remains committed to keeping FutureGen on track.”
The US DoE has issued a Request for Information, seeking the electric industry’s input on the costs and feasibility of building clean coal plants with CCS. It will follow this up with a Funding Opportunity Announcement outlining its plans for federal funding to equip the IGCC plants with CCS technology.
The DoE says it will provide funding for CCS technology on IGCC or other clean coal plants generating at least 300 MW and which are operational by 2015.
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