China turns old oil pipeline into new carbon highway in green cost-cutting gambit
Successful 27km trial unlocks vast carbon dioxide transport potential, bridging geographical gaps to accelerate a process seen as vital to large-scale decarbonisation
China has achieved a breakthrough in its decarbonisation efforts by successfully repurposing a long-haul oil pipeline to transport carbon dioxide, in a trial run that offers a potentially scalable solution to accelerate the nation’s ambitious climate goals.
The 27km (16.8-mile) route delivered carbon dioxide to an oilfield in central China’s Henan province earlier this month, according to China Oil and Gas Pipeline Network Corporation, also known as PipeChina.
In an online statement, the state-owned infrastructure giant said that the trial provided a “replicable and scalable” model for carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS). And its success was deemed a significant step in China’s green transition, with an aim to propel CCUS from isolated pilots towards large-scale deployment.
CCUS comprises a suite of technologies that capture carbon dioxide emissions, such as from power plants or industrial facilities, to prevent the detrimental by-product from entering the atmosphere. The captured gas is compressed, transported and typically reused in industrial applications or stored.
CCUS is a vital decarbonisation tool. By injecting captured carbon dioxide into oilfields, the process not only securely stores the greenhouse gas deep underground within the same impermeable geological formations that have naturally trapped oil and gas for millions of years, but it also facilitates the recovery of additional crude oil – a technique known as enhanced oil recovery, or EOR – thereby boosting production.