Feasibility study of a supplier neutral basic CCS concept and methodology for characterizing the heterogeneous flue gas at Kvitebjørn Varmes waste incineration plant in Tromsø

Background
Kvitebjørn Varme’s waste incineration plant in Tromsø will from 2025 emit roughly 125 000 tons of CO₂ annually. The plan is to capture and store most of the CO₂ from both biogen and fossil origin (project Ashlad). The incineration plant generates hot water from the waste destruction process, and this energy is efficiently utilized in the district heating system in Tromsø- also owned and operated by Kvitebjørn Varme (KVAS). The ambition is to decide the main technical concept at in 2015/2026, have FID in 2027, and commission in 2030.

An idea study conducted in 2022 identified the most relevant technologies for carbon capture for KVAS. Carbonate based technologies were designated as promising for KVAS since they don’t require steam for the capture process. Amine based technologies are still considered the base case option because they possess technical and commercial maturity. This feasibility study will investigate a basic CCS-concept based on an open-source amine technology. This will act as a strategic benchmark for further technology considerations, concept choices, and will strengthen the general and site-specific CCS-knowledge in the project organization.

The biggest barrier with amine technology for KVAS is that the lack of local steam production will result in a complicated integration to the existing plant, and might lead to a high thermal and electrical energy demand. The unclear interface between a heterogeneous flue gas and a carbon capture process sensitive to flue gas quality, the strict demands of CO₂-quality to access permanent storage and an immature regulatory system for emission control from carbon capture, also appears as significant challenges in the CCS-field, especially for amine-based technologies. The study therefore aims to develop a methodology for characterizing the heterogeneous flue gas under different operating conditions, and a design basis that describes the local conditions with respect to the arctic location of the plant. The different process steps of the basic concept will be designed and dimensioned to handle the heterogeneous flue gas, achieve high capture rate, stable operation, low emissions, and adequate CO₂-quality to access permanent storages.

The capture plant, liquefaction facility and intermediate storage is planned to be hosted by the sea, at a plot 300 meters away from the incineration plant. There are no obvious CO₂-cluster opportunities available, as there are few big emitters in geographical proximity to KVAS. But the closeness to the sea fosters the opportunity for direct shipping of CO₂ from KVAS to a permanent storage facility. The study will therefore investigate individual transport routes as a benchmark for potential future evaluations of collective transport routes in collaboration with other CCS-players.

Objective
The study aims to evaluate the feasibility of a standard basic CCS concept for KVAS with open-source amines and individual transport routes to permanent storage. In addition to this, a methodology for characterizing the heterogenous flue gas, and a design basis that explicate the local and arctic conditions that are relevant to the project will be developed. The goal of the study is to create a benchmark for a CCS-concept at KVAS that will build internal competence on the CCS- value chain for KVAS and enable the project organization to prepare the existing plant, the flue gas and plot/infrastructure with the right conditions for a future carbon capture installation. The feasibility study will also lay the groundwork a final technology and concept decision in 2025/2026.

Activities
The project has a planned duration of 12 months and will provide a handful of part deliveries during this period. The first period will be spent on hand over and review of technical and regulatory information to the executing party/parties, through site visit, workshops and regular meetings. Based on this, a preliminary design basis will be developed, and the flue gas methodology will be developed. A technology screening will also be conducted during the early stages of the study.

The preliminary design basis and the technology screening lays the foundation for technical evaluations that will construct the basic CCS-concept. The basic CCS-concept will then be subject to a technoeconomic feasibility evaluation. In the end, the design basis will be updated, based on the knowledge created from the feasibility study.

Future plans
The results from the feasibility study will be followed up by more detailed technical evaluation and/or investigation of alternative CCS-concepts in 2025/2026. The flue gas methodology will be conducted in 2025.