Transport is often perceived as the forgotten cousin in the CCS chain (it doesn’t even warrant a letter in the acronym). Unlike capture and storage, CO₂ pipelines are considered a ‘proven’ and commercialised technology. The Global CCS Institute’s Global Status of CCS: 2010 report highlights that 5,900 kilometres of pipeline currently operate in North America for supplying CO₂ to enhanced oil recovery (EOR). It also notes that CO₂ pipeline costs are relatively inexpensive. For a power generation plant with CCS, CO₂ pipeline transportation only represents around $1/MWh within a total levelised cost of electricity of that can range between $90-$151/MWh.

Yet Chapter 5, CO₂ Networks for CCS, in Global Status of CCS: 2010 emphasises that transport issues are still an important consideration, particularly when it comes to transport planning in regions with a high-concentration of large emitters.

‘Networks’, defined as shared or interconnected systems for transporting CO₂ from multiple capture sources to one or more underground injection sites,  can offer significant advantages and are thus a key value-proposition compared to unintegrated single-source-single-sink projects. 

Networks offer economies of scale and hence lower overall transport and potentially storage costs.  For example, the CO₂ Sense initiative for establishing a CCS network in Yorkshire, U.K., estimates cost savings of 33 per cent over the longer-term compared to individual pipelines from each emitter to their respective storage site.  In fact a coordinated regional effort to establish a network can reduce not only costs but also the risks for both initial and future projects. In particular, an established network reduces the barriers of entry for subsequent projects with access to existing infrastructure, but also with established expertise and business and financing structures.

Not surprisingly the Institute’s survey of large-scale integrated demonstration projects found that of the 77 in total that were identified at various stages of development, 33 (43 per cent) are either associated with one of 14 broader initiatives to establish a new CO₂ network in a region, or based on integrating into existing CO₂ transportation networks for EOR.

Establishing a new CO₂ network does introduce additional risks compared to single-source-single-sinks projects, particularly for the first movers within a network. There is investment risk with over-sizing infrastructure based on anticipated but uncertain demand in the future; political risks in requiring governments to support  over-sized infrastructure on top of the public financial support that would otherwise still be required; technical risk from inter-operability issues associated with handling multiple sources of CO₂; commercial risks with participation of multiple stakeholders; storage risk in proving-up sufficient capacity to handle the large CO₂ volumes over time; and regulatory risks if future regulatory developments are inconsistent with the network’s design.

A case study on lessons learnt by the Rotterdam CCS Network Project, one of the most advanced CCS network projects in the world, summarises how it has both capitalised on the opportunities and dealt with challenges associated with CO₂ transport and a network approach.  It even includes plans for CO₂ transport by ship, which unlike pipelines has not been fully demonstrated on a large scale.