Pembina, TC Energy to develop Alberta Carbon Grid

Pembina Pipeline Corp. and TC Energy Corp. plan to jointly develop the Alberta Carbon Grid (ACG), a world-scale carbon transportation and sequestration system which will be able to transport more than 20 million tonnes/year of CO₂. The open-access system will use a combination of existing pipelines and a newly developed sequestration hub to connect the Fort McMurray region, the Alberta Industrial Heartland (northeast of Edmonton), and the Drayton Valley region to a sequestration center northeast of Redwater, Alta.

The companies said they will use a combination of redeployment, retrofits, recapitalization, and surplus capacity—including Pembina's proposed acquisition of Inter Pipeline Ltd.—to execute ACG (OGJ Online, June 1, 2021). Principal segments include:

• Sequestration. A reservoir near Fort Saskatchewan has been selected, where large volumes of CO₂ will be sequestered in Basal Cambrian Sands. Permit applications have been prepared and the companies say they have worked with the Government of Alberta to obtain support for the project and set a path to obtain sequestration rights. Initial studies indicate the chosen reservoir will be capable of sequestering more than 2 billion tonnes of CO₂, which represents many decades of capacity. The companies envision delivering to both the proposed sequestration site as well as third-party sites, establishing development of a strategic carbon-storage hub in the region.
• North Leg. Pembina and TC Energy plan to retrofit existing pipeline systems, combined with new build expansion to connect the oil sands to a sequestration hub. Initial hydraulics indicate a design capacity of up to 40,000 tonnes/day of CO₂, allowing a large portion of emissions from the Fort McMurray area to be transported to sequestration.
• Central Leg. The companies plan to retrofit existing pipeline systems, combined with new gathering laterals, to provide interconnectivity in the Alberta Industrial Heartland and gather and deliver CO₂ from and to industrial sources, with initial hydraulics indicating a design capacity of 10,000-20,000 tonnes/day.
• Southwest Leg. Pembina and TC Energy plan to retrofit existing pipeline systems, combined with new-build expansion, for the system’s southwest leg. This portion would capture CO₂ from regional power generation at a rate of 10,000-20,000 tonnes/day.
• Future Legs. With customer support, the companies have identified multiple opportunities to extend ACG into other regions, for example Joffre, Christina Lake, Cold Lake, or Swan Hills, enabling future expansion and greater connectivity.
• Partnership. Pembina and TC Energy are open to other owners of suitable existing infrastructure to join the partnership with a view to enhancing ACG’s capability and reach.

"Carbon capture, utilization and storage will lower emissions, create jobs, and increase our competitiveness," said Seamus O'Regan Jr., Canada's Minister of Natural Resources. "Congratulations to Pembina and TC Energy for coming together with an integrated CO₂ transportation and storage infrastructure solution to lower emissions in Alberta. This is how we get to net-zero."

Canada is pursuing a 40-45% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030.