Planning India's First CO2-EOR Project as Carbon Capture Utilization & Storage: A Step Towards Sustainable Growth

Abstract

India is the fastest growing major economy and third largest CO2 emitter in the world. Keeping cognizance of country's energy requirement and commitment to climate change, embarking upon technologies having minimal carbon footprint is the need of the hour. Carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) is one such technology which offers dual benefits of carbon sequestration & enhancing oil production from mature oils fields. This paper outlines ONGC's efforts in bringing nation's first CO2-EOR project. In view of non-availability of natural CO2 sources in India, usage of anthropogenic CO2 captured from thermal power plants was conceptualised. Based upon CO2 source-sink matching exercise and favourable reservoir & fluid parameters, two oil fields were screened. Technical feasibility of CO2-EOR was first ascertained in laboratory by determination of minimum miscibility pressure (MMP) of CO2 through slim tube experiments. Encouraged by laboratory results, full field compositional simulation studies along with fluid characterization inputs from PVT simulator were carried out. The MMP were found to be in range 190-250 Ksc, which is below the initial reservoir pressures of the targeted reservoirs. The proposed scheme entails drilling of around 70-80 wells inclusive of both producers & injectors and has the potential to yield an incremental recovery between 10-14 %. A sensitivity analysis based upon purity of CO2 and its adverse effect on MMP was carried out in terms of reduced oil recoveries. Since, this shall be a CCUS project, CO2 from the produced stream has to be separated, compressed and reinjected in a closed loop system. Around 5-8 MMT of CO2 will be sequestrated through Structural, Solubility and Residual trapping mechanisms as modelled in compositional simulator. IFT reduction & decrease in Sor (Residual oil saturation) as result of swelling, miscibility of CO2 with native oil were also modelled in simulator. Being first of its kind project in India, there are many inherent challenges to the CCUS project. At the source end, capturing CO2 from flue gas stream and its compression & transportation is a cost and energy intensive process. At the Sink end, CO2 being acidic and corrosive gas will need retrofit modifications in terms of special corrosion resistant metallurgy for existing processing facilities. The learning curve from this endeavour shall create knowledge base to further expand deployment of CCUS in India, bringing a large portfolio of reservoirs under the ambit of CO2-EOR. Success of CCUS in India will not only increase domestic oil production but also cater to address the National INDC of reducing emission intensity of GDP by 33-35 percent by 2030 as per Paris agreement.