Dastur Energy Pvt Ltd India (Dastur) has entered into a tie-up with the Advanced Resources International and IIT Bombay for geological mapping for enabling large-scale storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the country.

According to Atanu Mukherjee, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dastur, with the technical expertise and know-how of Advanced Resources International and IIT Bombay, the company would be able to create large storage maps which would allow storage of CO2 most effectively.

Advanced Resources International (ARI) is a consulting, research and development firm providing services related to unconventional gas (gas shales, coalbed methane and tight sands), enhanced oil recovery (EOR), and carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS).

“ARI is a company focused on finding the geographical storage places where excess CO2 that cannot be converted to carbon to methanol or aggregates can be stored most effectively for injection for oil recovery. IIT Bombay enables CO2 capture and storage. So, along with ARI and IIT Bombay, we will be able to create large storage maps,” Mukherjee told BusinessLine.

Carbon capture and utilisation project

It is to be noted that the company had recently completed the techno-economic feasibility of the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd’s carbon capture and utilisation project at the 13.7 mtpa (million tonnes per annum) Koyali refinery in Gujarat.

Atanu Mukherjee, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dastur

Atanu Mukherjee, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dastur

The project would provide an economically viable solution for capturing up to almost 0.7 mtpa of CO2 from its steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen generation units (HGU) at a very competitive cost structure. The captured CO2 will be primarily used at ONGC’s Gandhar oilfields for enhanced oil recovery from its maturing oil wells.

Mukherjee feels that the geological mapping or reservoir mapping would help find out ways to engineer solutions to store and use CO2 most effectively for generating oil in the Indian subcontinent.

Providing solutions across the carbon value chain

Dastur had recently entered into an agreement with US-based Gas Technology Institute (GTI) to develop commercial-scale, low-carbon gasification solutions in India. According to Mukherjee, the aim would be to bring complete solutions across the carbon value chain to be able to provide comprehensive, economically viable solutions along with policy support for enabling a carbon capture ecosystem.

“It is not only about capturing CO2 but transporting it and also about disposing it in the most effective manner and converting it into useful value-added products in terms of methanol or mineral aggregates, carbon materials. It is important to have the right kind of technologies,” he said.

Dastur has also tied up with Carbon Recycling International (CRI), which produces methanol by utilising captured CO2 and hydrogen. While this may be a little expensive as compared to the imported methanol but can be created from waste gases and by doing so one could create value for CO2 emitted without storing it.

This apart, it has also tied up with California-based Blue Planet Systems which specialises in technology where the captured CO2 can be passed over waste materials such as used concrete and create pellets that absorbs CO2 on a large scale. It can be used for road construction and concrete mixing.

“Dastur is the single point anchor for designing, developing, and implementing these projects along with technology transfer over time through design and engineering of these packages while honouring all licensing and IP that these partner companies have got. Once manufactured in India, it will help lower costs and will be a win-win solution which will help make India self-reliant,” he pointed out.

Dastur is in talks with JSPL, Coal India Ltd, IOCL and Dalmia Cement, among others, for the implementation of some of these technologies.

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