BHP Billiton and Carbon Capture and Storage

This article is part of the Global Energy Monitor coverage of "clean coal."

Sub-articles:

Carbon Capture and Storage Carbon Capture and Storage projects which have been abandoned Clean Coal Clean Coal Marketing Campaign Clean Coal Technology Clean coal - quotable quotes

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America's Power America's Power Army Americans for Balanced Energy Choices American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity FutureGen U.S. coal politics

2008 Annual Report

In its 2008 annual report BHP Billiton did not mention carbon capture and storage or geosequestration at all.

2009 annual report

In its 2009 annual report BHP Billiton did not mention carbon capture and storage or geosequestration at all.

2010 annual report

In its 2010 annual report BHP Billiton did not mention carbon capture and storage or geosequestration at all.

2011 annual report

In its 2011 annual report BHP Billiton did not mention carbon capture and storage or geosequestration at all.

2012 annual report

In its 2012 annual report BHP Billiton did not mention carbon capture and storage or geosequestration at all.

2013 annual report

In its 2013 annual report BHP Billiton did not mention carbon capture and storage or geosequestration at all.

2014 annual report

In its 2014 annual report BHP Billiton stated:

"to effectively address the challenge of climate change, there must be a significant focus on developing and deploying low-emissions technologies over the next few decades. The rate of technology improvement and subsequent adoption must be faster than the usual commercial timeframes if these technologies are to be available at scale and at acceptable cost to meet the global challenge.

"Industry and government will need to work together in collaborative partnerships to facilitate this step-change. We are a foundation member of the Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies, one of the world’s leading collaborative research organisations focused on carbon capture and storage (CCS). We contribute a voluntary levy to the Australian Coal Association Low Emissions Technologies to facilitate the development of low-emissions technologies from coal use, including CCS. We are a member of the Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute which aims to accelerate the development, demonstration and deployment of CCS globally through knowledge sharing, fact-based advice and advocacy and works to create favourable conditions to implement CCS.

"We are developing a more integrated approach to low-emissions technology to provide a roadmap for our investments. We will investigate opportunities for investment across a range of technologies that have the potential to lead to material emission reductions in our operations and across our supply chains. To accelerate deployment of any prospective technologies, we will seek opportunities to partner with governments, industry leaders and key researchers."

2015

Fiona Wild speech

In a March 2015 speech at the Grattan Institute, Fiona Wild, the Vice-President of Environment & Climate Change at BHP Billiton, described one of its four elements of addressing climate change as being technology, in which it included CCS. She stated that:

"Technology and innovation have the potential to help all of us use energy more efficiently, develop large scale step-change technologies, like carbon capture and storage, scale up renewables and improve energy storage. But these technologies must be available at scale, lower cost, and much, much faster than the usual commercial timeframes to meet the challenge of climate change. Industry has a significant collaborative role to play with government, academia and community to facilitate this step-change.

"Since 2007 we’ve spent almost half-a-billion dollars on low emissions technology research, development and deployment across a number of projects ranging in complexity and scale."

Wild went on to describe a methane capture project it had undertaken at one of its underground coal mines in the Illawarra in New South Wales. Then she returned to the theme of CCS. She said:

"Working with others to leverage our investments underpins our support for CO2CRC, which Tania leads, as we believe this is one of the world’s foremost collaborative research organisations on carbon capture and storage. Our current focus is on building a long term road map for our investments, so we can play our part in accelerating global deployment of low emissions technologies. Although using technology to reduce our own emissions is vital, finding technologies that can reduce emissions form our customers’ use of our products offers a more material opportunity and why working in partnership across our supply chain is so important."

Andrew Mackenzie speech

In a March 2015 speech to the Scottish Oil Club, the CEO of BHP Billiton Andrew MacKenzie stated:

Carbon capture and storage could form a significant industry

"The UK is also playing a major role in developing the technology the industry needs to effectively address the challenge of climate change. To achieve this, there must be a significant focus to develop and deploy low-emission technologies. I see no trade-off between the pursuit of efficiency, innovation and sustainability."

"The UK is the only country in the European Union that is seriously investing in Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) with the Peterhead project in Scotland and White Rose in England. The UK has some of the foremost research institutions seeking to deepen our fundamental understanding of CCS with the skills required, very similar to those Scotland used to build the North Sea oil industry. Importantly, the UK is also creating a regulatory environment that supports the growth of a CCS industry. And when government works collaboratively with industry, a cost-effective step change can be made."

"CCS is an investment in the future of our industry and an example of how we can use our understanding of geology and technology to address environmental priorities. To give you some perspective, should CCS become commercially proven, it could become a significant industry for the UK on a scale to rival other parts of the energy industry."

"If fossil fuels continue to supply most of the world’s energy CCS could be as large as the oil and gas business, as the volume we store in the earth would match what we take from the earth. Investment in CCS is critical and should occur on the same scale as investment in renewables."

Dean Dalla Valle CEDA Speech

In April 2015 Dean Dalle Valle, the then President of BHP Billiton’s global Coal business, made a speech to the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia defending the future development and use of coal. On the last page and a bit of his 13-page speech Dalla Valle stated:

"BHP Billiton and the resources industry has a responsibility to ... contribute its technical and geological expertise to help drive deployment of low emissions technology, such as the development of large scale carbon capture and storage."

Announcement of MOU with SaskPower on Boundary Dam

In September 2015 BHP Billiton and the Saskatchewan-based electricity provider, SaskPower announced "a partnership to accelerate the global development of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology by sharing access to the data, information and lessons learned from SaskPower’s Boundary Dam facility – the world’s first full chain power sector CCS project ... Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the two companies, and subject to contractual terms, BHP Billiton would contribute to the establishment of a global knowledge centre to help promote research and reduce the cost and risk associated with new CCS projects."

The media release stated:

"BHP Billiton Chief Commercial Officer, Dean Dalla Valle, said he was excited that the company was working with SaskPower to support efforts to reduce the world’s emissions.

“To respond effectively to climate change, we must develop and deploy a wide range of low emissions technologies more quickly than the usual commercial timeframes. But progress remains too slow.

“The individual components of CCS (capture, transport and storage) have been successfully demonstrated for many years but Boundary Dam is the first power project to bring all these together. Much more investment and many more projects are needed to bring down the cost of technology and accelerate its deployment. By making relevant information from Boundary Dam more widely available, we hope our contribution has a multiplier effect and promotes CCS investment around the world.

“We continue to assess other investments to support the development of CCS and other low emissions technology as part of our commitment to take action on climate change,” Mr Dalla Valle said.

The media release also cited Giles Hellyer, President BHP Billiton Canada stating:

“As the home of our Jansen Potash project, we have a strong connection with and commitment to Saskatchewan and it’s great to see some of the innovative work being done in the region recognised globally as part of such an important effort to reduce the world’s emissions.”

“This partnership demonstrates the strength of the work being undertaken by SaskPower at the Boundary Dam facility, the support offered by the Saskatchewan Government and BHP Billiton’s commitment to tackling climate change.

“We know there is still much more to be done in CCS, but we are encouraged by the results we are seeing today, and the innovations we are working on for tomorrow. The Boundary Dam project offers lessons for all of us and we look forward to being part of it.”

Articles and resources

Related GEM.wiki articles

• BHP Billiton's climate policy
• BHP Billiton's coal interests
• BHP Billiton Annual Reports and Carbon Capture and Storage
• BHP Billiton's $500 million spent on 'low emissions technology research, development and deployment' since 2007
• Carbon Capture and Storage demonstration projects worldwide
• Carbon Capture and Storage projects which have been abandoned
• Carbon Capture and Storage in Australia
• Carbon Capture and Storage in Canada
• Carbon Capture and Storage in China
• Carbon Capture and Storage in India
• Carbon Capture and Storage in Norway
• Carbon Capture and Storage in South Africa
• Carbon Capture and Storage in the United Kingdom
• Carbon Capture and Storage in the United States
• Clean Development Mechanism and Carbon Capture and Storage
• Carbon Capture and Storage Demonstration Project (United Kingdom)
• Clean coal - quotable quotes
• Peterhead Carbon Capture and Storage project
• The Australian Coal Association's Proposed Carbon Capture and Storage Taskforce

External resources

Speeches & comments by BHP Executives on CCS

• Marius Kloppers, Chief Executive Officer, "Diversification and Delivery in a Cyclical World", Speech to the Brisbane Mining Club in Brisbane, Australia], October 17, 2012.
• Marcus Randolph, Chief Executive Ferrous and Coal, Lucas Dow, Head of Group HSEC and Ian Wood, Vice President Community Relations and Sustainability, "2012 Investor Sustainability Round Table", December 3, 2012.
• Jac Nasser, BHP Billiton Chairman, /2013/130411_BHPB_CHAIRMAN_%20ABCC_SPEECH.pdf "Speech to the Australian British Chamber of Commerce", April 11, 2013.
• Andrew MacKenzie, CEO of BHP Billiton,"Speech to the Melbourne Mining Club", June 6, 2013.
• Andrew MacKenzie, CEO of BHP Billiton, "Speech to the Asia Society, Business of Asia Luncheon in Melbourne, Australia", BHP Billiton, August 7, 2013.
• Andrew MacKenzie, CEO of BHP Billiton, CERAWeek 2014 - Energy, Commodities and the Global Economy, Houston", March 4, 2014.
• Fiona Wild, Vice-President of Environment & Climate Change at BHP Billiton, "Energy Futures - What is the future of Australian energy exports in a carbon constrained world?", Grattan Institute, March 5, 2015.
• Amanda Saunders, "BHP Billiton wants 'rules' of carbon reduction game", Sydney Morning Herald, March 6, 2015. (This article reports Fiona Wild's statements made at the Grattan Institute seminar. The article reported that BHP Billiton had spent $500 million on low emissions technologies since 2007.)
• Andrew MacKenzie, CEO of BHP Billiton, Speech to the Annual Dinner of the Scottish Oil Club", BHP Billiton, March 20, 2015.
• Dean Dalla Vale, President of Coal, BHP Billiton, "BHP Billiton Discusses the Global Outlook for Coal at CEDA", April 2, 2015. (Media Release here.)