Alberta invests $131 million in carbon capture projects in bid to cut emissions

Alberta is investing $131 million in projects designed to help prevent carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere.

Up to $131 million from Alberta's Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) fund is being funnelled into Alberta's Industrial Energy Efficiency and Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage program, Premier Jason Kenney announced Thursday. 

Seven projects have been selected to receive a total $100 million in program funding, Kenney told a news conference. Another $31 million will go to other carbon capture utilization and storage projects by the end of this year.

The projects include: 

TIER is Alberta's industrial greenhouse gas emissions pricing and emissions trading system. It's funded by large industrial facilities, which account for more than 60 per cent of Alberta's total emissions.

Carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) and carbon capture and storage (CCS) capture emissions, permanently storing carbon dioxide underground or using it in other industrial processes. 

Kenney, a strong proponent of the technology as a way of reducing emissions from Alberta's fossil-fuels energy sector, said the latest investment will set the groundwork for "a lower emissions future" for the province.

"The seven successful projects we have selected so far are game-changers for cutting emissions in Alberta," he said. "They are incredible initiatives based on home-grown Alberta ingenuity and leading edge technology." 

CCUS can capture, use and store up to 90 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions produced by industrial facilities.

The seven projects will cut about 2.9 million tonnes of emissions by 2030 and create an estimated 2,200 jobs, Kenney said. 

"These investments will help create jobs, spur economic growth and continue the hard work that we are doing to protect our environment as a responsible and sustainable energy leader," he said. 

Last year Alberta  invested $750 million from the TIER fund to support projects that help industries reduce carbon emissions.The province has said the investment will inject $1.9 billion into Alberta's economy and cut about six million tonnes of emissions each year. 

"This is another huge investment that will also reduce emissions while spurring economic growth and job creation," Kenney said Thursday. 

CCUS technology is also a key linchpin in the Alberta Hydrogen Roadmap, a policy that aims to make Alberta a hydrogen powerhouse within the decade.