Aker Carbon Capture and MAN Energy Solutions have entered into technology cooperation to develop energy-efficient compression solutions for carbon capture and storage (CCS) applications with heat recovery.
"The agreement supports the companies’ joint target to reduce the cost of removing CO2 emissions from industrial plants around the world," the companies said in a statement.
The cooperation builds on MAN’s experience in compressor technology, the integration of system components and their design and delivery, as well as Aker Carbon Capture’s amine technology and efficient carbon-capture process design.
“We are very pleased to formalize our good relationship with MAN Energy Solutions in the form of a technology-cooperation agreement. Through this partnership, we intend to further improve the process efficiency and thereby lower the cost of carbon capture to the benefit of our clients and the environment,” said Valborg Lundegaard, CEO of Aker Carbon Capture, a company created recently as an Aker Solutions spinoff. Aker Carbon Capture has plans to secure firm contracts for carbon capture plants for a total of 10 million tonnes per year by the end of 2025.
“Carbon capture and storage will play a major role in a decarbonized future. This technology contributes both to reducing emissions in key sectors directly, and to removing CO2 to balance unavoidable emissions, which is critical with regard to the targets of the Paris Agreement,” stated Dr Uwe Lauber, CEO of MAN Energy Solutions. “As experienced forerunners in the CCS field, we will build on our well-founded knowhow and work together on new, energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly CCS-technology solutions.”
With CCS, captured CO2 is compressed before being liquefied and transported to a permanent-storage location. The two companies aim to develop carbon capture solutions that require less energy. The transfer of heat is key for CO2-capture plants’ improved, overall power-consumption with MAN Energy Solutions able to recover heat from its compression systems. Hence, the steam generated will cover nearly 50% of the power demand for Aker Carbon Capture’s capture plant.
The technology-cooperation agreement will run for seven years and forms the basis for project deliveries to carbon-capture plants.
Solutions will be applicable for large facilities, such as the Heidelberg Cement Norcem cement plant in Brevik, Norway where Aker Carbon Capture will deliver a carbon-capture plant using the company’s patented and HSE-friendly CCS technology. Subject to parliamentary approval of the funding, this will represent the first time that CCS will have been deployed at scale at a cement factory anywhere in the world.