6 tips to de-risk carbon capture at cement plants

Carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) helps cement producers when it comes to closing in on decarbonisation, but its adoption is challenged by technical and commercial risks. Here are our expert’s top 6 tips to manage risks using well-tested project delivery models.

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Save your business time and money by learning from our experience successfully completing more than 100 carbon capture projects. Here are six tips to de-risk a carbon capture project at your cement plant.

Tip 1: Proactively assess core carbon capture technologies

Assessing core capture technology is central to successfully deploy a carbon capture project. Emerging technologies are entering markets, but their applications involve technological, economic, and environmental complexities that must be assessed compared to other well-proven technologies.

Proactive assessments of core carbon capture technology can help:

Identify potential technological and operational limitations, and environmental impacts
Make more informed decisions
Allocate resources efficiently
Design strategies for long-term viability
Boost investor confidence

Tip 2: Optimise energy usage

Integrating carbon capture technologies within your cement plant’s energy infrastructure can lead to a diversified and more resilient energy portfolio. This diversification can act as a buffer against energy price fluctuations and supply disruptions, reducing exposure to energy-related risks. Carbon capture integration can also help you stay ahead of environmental regulations and emissions standards, meaning your carbon capture project is less susceptible to regulatory hurdles and compliance-related issues.

Energy optimisation includes assessing waste heat recovery such as district heat through heat pumps and reducing energy usage in the carbon capture process itself. Determining the most financially attractive heat recovery and energy integration solution depends on each cement plant’s unique technical configurations, as well as financial drivers like future projected cost of energy, cost of capital, and return on investment requirements. Optimisation may also need specific utility assessments, including access to sewer, raw water, electricity infrastructure, and district heating networks.

Energy optimisation and integration can help:

Minimise energy waste
Reduce environmental footprint
Reduce operational costs
Demonstrate commitment to sustainability and responsible business practices
Enhance relationship with investors

Tip 3: Plan for potential environmental constraints

While carbon capture plants follow a typical planning and permitting pathway, certain elements are particular to carbon capture technology. Concentrated CO2 is new for most cement plants, so understanding process and health related risks is vital. See the bullet points below for common risks:

Documenting the best and safest physical intermediate on-site storage of liquified pressurised CO2 requires dedicated risk assessments, or a computational fluid dynamic model of worst-case scenarios to determine if mitigations are needed or to document the risks to authorities and internal stakeholders
Air-borne pollutants are impacted partly due to a smaller volume flow of flue gas once CO2 is removed (affecting flue gas dispersion), and partly due to the risk of new pollutants that must be managed. For example, degradation amine products, like nitrosamines, which environmental authorities may focus on.
Air dispersion modelling is helpful at early project stages to determine if reusing existing stacks is viable or to clarify options and constraints for a new stack or point source of emission. Later in project development, it is important to get requirements from authorities for monitoring emissions and limits in the cleaned flue gas. Each country may have different requirements.
Cement plant pollution emission limit values (e.g., for nitrogen oxides and sulphur oxides) may strengthen in the future, so carbon capture flue gas integration must consider requirements for future abatement technologies.
Planning and permitting activities must take place prior to final investment decisions to avoid the risk of additional environmental requirements (and cost overruns or delays) during project execution.

Tip 4: Apply solvent health management systems

Solvent health management systems are essential in carbon capture processes, especially in cement plants where flue gas often contains impurities. By implementing additional steps to clean the flue gas before it enters the capture plant, the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the carbon capture system can potentially be improved. The removal of particulates, dust, and other contaminants enhances the performance of the solvent while also reducing potential damage and wear on the equipment, leading to improved operational reliability.

Tip 5: Link the business case and carbon capture project implementation

Implementing carbon capture at a cement plant relies on a robust business case. A carbon capture project is a capital-intensive infrastructure project. Meaning it includes revenue streams depending on external factors such as the future value of CO2, regulatory settings, investment cost, as well as the impact on existing operational costs and staffing.

Three major aspects of developing a carbon capture business case:

:
Carbon capture technology
The capture technology and its integration with existing assets as well as the technology’s associated investment and operational costs

:
Utilisation or storage proximity
The associated market drivers including transportation options and costs. Transport and storage costs are a large part of overall CCUS OPEX costs. Commercial arrangements with storage providers are needed before final investment decisions can be made.
:
Finance options
Finance options are often split between balance sheet equity, project finance, and grant funding.

A robust business case cannot stand alone. It needs to be supported by a well-structured project development process to implement technical and operational project aspects including risk assessment, stakeholder engagement, implementation, and evaluation.

A good project model:

Acts as a guide through all project stages from feasibility, design, financial close, and commercial operation
Informs key stakeholders about development costs and risks, which helps for go/no-go decisions
Keeps a time schedule

Tip 6: Put a procurement strategy in place

Procurement plays a key role in de-risking carbon capture projects at cement plants. For some projects, paid pre-engineering by market actors such as engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors or technology providers is required to commercially de-risk a project while keeping a competitive environment. For other projects, a more suitable approach is partnering, for instance if grant funding deadlines require fast-track project delivery.

A procurement strategy must also consider how many lots the project will consist of. For instance, a procurement strategy details several options, such as:

If you are able and willing to procure parts of the project yourself to cut costs, e.g. CO2 storage tanks, balance of plant, jetty infrastructure, or civil infrastructure
If your project financials require de-risking to a degree where a fixed price/turn-key contractor is needed
If you need long-term operation and maintenance contracts for operating the carbon capture plant

Ready to take CCUS action? Contact our experts

Regardless of where your cement plant is on its CCUS journey, our experts are eager to provide you insights and support for every project phase. The more proactive you are, the more you can avoid potential risks. Contact our experts today to learn where you can start preventing risks.

Want to know more?

Burçin Temel McKenna
Global Head of Carbon Capture
+45 51 61 40 19

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