BKV PURSUES CARBON CAPTURE, SEQUESTRATION — Barnett Zero, BKV’s carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project, was unveiled to visitors Thursday in Bridgeport. It’s the first designated commercial CCS project of its kind. Barnett Zero, a collaboration between BKV and Enlink, completed its first successful injection of carbon dioxide last month. AUSTIN JACKSON/WCMESSENGER
George Mitchell changed the oil and gas industry in Wise County after he pioneered hydraulic fracturing of the Barnett Shale, discovering techniques to economically extract the natural gas deep below North Texas.
Now, the BKV Corporation (BKV) and EnLink Midstream are tapping into that same Barnett Shale with the Barnett Zero venture in Bridgeport, a project that they hope will advance the natural gas industry and do their part in protecting the world.
BKV, one of the top natural gas producers in the U.S., celebrated the opening of the Barnett Zero project in Bridgeport Thursday, inviting various experts and industry representatives to tour the innovative process to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions in a manner that will generate millions in revenue.
In short, Barnett Zero collects and processes carbon dioxide (CO₂) before its released into the atmosphere and stores it deep below ground.
The process is called carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). Barnett Zero is the first EPA-approved, Class II, CCS project in the U.S, and among the first commercial CCS operations in the country.
ROAD TO NET ZERO — BKV Chief Executive Officer Chris Kanlin addresses attendees at the Barnett Zero project ribbon cutting Thursday in Bridgeport. The carbon capture and sequestration project in Bridgeport is a commercial venture and part of the natural gas producer’s goals to have net-zero carbon emissions by 2025. AUSTIN JACKSON/WCMESSENGER
“[CCS] is in an area where we operate, and it requires the same skills as natural gas production. But nobody was doing it. They were just talking about it. We had an entrepreneurial attitude that we can do this, we can figure this out,” said BKV Chief Executive Officer Chris Kanlin. “The latent technology has been around, at least since 40 years ago. The innovation comes from a thousand little things that made it happen.”
Kanlin said BKV’s CCS process is commercially viable solution to erasing emissions that are harming the environment. The internal revenue service compensates BKV $85 for every ton of CO₂ equivalent that’s processed and injected, Kanlin said. He anticipates an $18 million check from the IRS from the first year of CCS operations.
Rising strains on natural resources and consumer demands for clean energy were the impetus for the project.
“We have a problem on our planet. We have a lot of people who need energy. Energy equals prosperity. However, we’re consuming our resources. It doesn’t take a lot of common sense to realize that 10 billion people consume more than 8 billion. So how do we solve that? We’re not going to get rid of the population. We have to have a solution, and the key area is getting CO₂ out of the atmosphere,’ Kalnin said. “… BKV believes that the combination of natural gas and CO₂ reduction through carbon capture and sequestration is the future.”
In November, BKV announced the successful initial injection of CO₂ at Barnett Zero, around two years after pursuing CCS as a commercial venture. BKV has partnered with EnLink on the project. EnLink transports the natural gas produced by BKV in the Barnett to its natural gas processing plant in Bridgeport. The CO₂ waste stream is captured and transported to the BKV facility, where it’s compressed and sequestered underground through the Barnett Zero injection control well.
CCS EQUIPMENT — The Barnett Zero project uses a process at multiple sites on the property (also pictured below) to transport, compress and inject carbon dioxide deep into the earth. The site is located near the EnLink Midstream plant in west Bridgeport. AUSTIN JACKSON/WCMESSENGER
“This project clearly demonstrates EnLink’s commitment to reducing emissions from our own operations and creating shareholder value,” said Jesse Arenivas, Chief Executive Officer of EnLink in a press release. “The commencement of operations for the Barnett Zero project with BKV reflects tangible progress on EnLink’s vision to create the future of midstream. EnLink now has carbon flowing through our pipelines, and I believe this will be the first of many CCS projects EnLink sees to fruition.”
BKV estimates that the Barnett Zero project will achieve an average sequestration rate of up to 210,000 metric tons of CO₂ equivalent per year over the course of the project life. The Bridgeport facility has the capacity to offset the emissions created by the operation of approximately 45,000 automobiles in a single day, said Lauren Read, the vice president of the company’s dCarbon Ventures, a division of BKV focused on expanding commercial carbon capture, utilization and sequestration.
The company plans to repeat and scale Barnett Zero as a modular prototype at future sites. The next phases are already in the works.
A MODEL TO OFFSET EMISSIONS— BKV Chief Executive Officer Chris Kanlin told the various oil and gas industry experts and guests in attendance that BKV plans to use Barnett Zero as a scalable model that can replicated at sites for third-party CCS applications. AUSTIN JACKSON/WCMESSENGER
BKV is preparing to open a second CCS project this year, called the Cotton Cove project. Additionally, the company said it is pursuing three additional natural gas processing projects aimed at sequestering third-party emissions that would inject approximately 970,000 metric tonsof captured CO2 equivalent per year.
The effort started in Wise County in what Read described as a major milestone for sustainable energy solutions.
“This project sets a precedent for commercial carbon capture and sequestration operations in the nation,” Read said. “…We’re making history here.”
BIG CHECK — BKV donated a $20,000 check to the Bridgeport Education Foundation to fund STEM advancements at Bridgeport ISD at the Barnett Zero celebration Thursday. AUSTIN JACKSON/WCMESSENGER
Loading Comments