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Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Project of Japan, CO2 Injection in Progress

Yutaka Tanaka, Yoshihiro Sawada, Daiji Tanase, Tetsuo Kasukawa, Jiro Tanaka

Japan CCS Co., Ltd.

1. Introduction

A large-scale CCS demonstration project is currently being undertaken by the Japanese

government which is Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (hereinafter METI) in the

Tomakomai area, Hokkaido prefecture, Japan. The project objective is to demonstrate the viability of

a full CCS system, from CO2 capture to injection and storage. One hundred thousand tonnes/year or

more of CO2 will be injected and stored in offshore saline aquifers in the Tomakomai port area. The

implementation of this project has been commissioned to Japan CCS Co., Ltd. Construction of the

facilities was completed in October 2015, and after finishing a test-run in February, CO2 injection

commenced in April 2016. The implementation of CO2 injection is scheduled for three years, and the

monitoring of micro-seismicity, natural earthquakes and the marine environment will be conducted

for five years. The total CO2 amount injected into the shallow reservoir reached ten thousand tonnes

in February 2017.

2. Project overview

The main features of this project are as follows:

・ First full CCS system deployed in Japan, a country prone to frequent earthquakes.

・ Two-stage CO2 capture system providing for low energy consumption.

・ First case of deviated CO2 injection wells drilled into offshore reservoirs from an onshore injection

facility, greatly saving drilling and maintenance costs.

・ Injection interval length exceeding 1,100m to enhance injection efficiency.

・ Extensive monitoring system to verify that natural earthquakes do not effect CO2 injection and

that CO2 injection does not induce noticeable tremors

・ CO2 storage governed by Japanese law reflecting London 1996 Protocol

・ First case of CCS near urban area, requiring extensive stakeholder engagement.

The CO2 source is a hydrogen production unit (HPU) of an adjacent oil refinery, which supplies

off gas containing approximately 50% CO2 from a Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) hydrogen

purification unit. Figure 1 shows the gas flow from the CO2 source to the capture and injection

facilities. In the capture facility, gaseous CO2 of 99% purity is recovered by a commercially proven

amine scrubbing process. Figure 2 shows an aerial photo of the ground facilities. A two-stage

absorption system including a low pressure flash tower reduces the amine reboiler duty in the

capture system, and the energy consumption for CO2 capture is approximately 1.22 GJ/tonne-CO2 or

less. Figure 3 shows the CO2 capture process applied to the project.

At the onshore injection facility, the CO2 is compressed and injected into two different offshore

reservoirs by two separate deviated wells, as illustrated in Figure 4. The storage points are located 3

to 4 km offshore. The shallow reservoir, a saline aquifer mainly composed of sandstone located

approximately 1,000m below the seabed, was reached by an extended reach drilling (ERD) well with

a maximum inclination of 83 degrees, vertical depth of 1,188m and horizontal reach of 3,058m

(Figure 5). Slotted liners covered by sand control screens were set over the injection interval almost

1,200m in length in order to minimize sand flow back into the well. The deep reservoir is a saline

aquifer composed of volcanic/volcaniclastic rocks located approximately 2,500m below the seabed.

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The deep injection well has a maximum inclination of 72 degrees, vertical depth of 2,753m and

horizontal reach of 4,346m.

Figure 1. Gas flow from CO2 source to capture and injection facilities

Figure 2. Aerial photo of the CO2 capture and injection facilities

Tokyo

Tomakomai

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Figure 3. CO2 capture process of the Tomakomai CCS demonstration project

Figure 4. Schematic geological cross section of the Tomakomai demonstration site

Figure 5. Profile of the injection well (IW-2) for the Moebetsu Formation

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To confirm the safety and stability of CO2 injection, it is necessary to monitor the CO2 behavior in

the reservoirs and conduct observation continuously to detect any CO2 leakage. For this purpose,

surveys to delineate the subsurface CO2 distribution and monitoring of the injected CO2 volume,

formation pressure and temperature will be conducting. As Japan is highly susceptible to

earthquakes, natural earthquakes and micro-seismicity are also monitoring to verify that natural

earthquakes do not affect the stored CO2, and that CO2 injection does not cause any increase in

noticeable tremors. The extensive monitoring system comprising 3 observation wells, 4 ocean

bottom seismometers, 1 ocean bottom cable, wellbore temperature, pressure, and flow meters has

been established for this purpose. Baseline 3D and 2D seismic surveys were conducted in JFY2009

and JFY2013 respectively, and yearly-related 2D and 3D seismic surveys are to be repeated from

JFY 2016 to the end of the project. The monitoring data will also be used to update a simulation

model to predict CO2 behavior. Figure 6 illustrates the layout of the monitoring facilities that have

been established and Table 1 shows the planned monitoring items.

Figure 6. Layout of the monitoring facilities

In Japan, subsea CO2 geological storage is regulated by the Act on Prevention of Marine Pollution

and Maritime Disaster under the regulatory authority of the Japanese Government - Ministry of

Environment (hereinafter MOE), enforced to reflect the London 1996 Protocol. The baseline marine

environmental surveys were conducted from JFY2013 to JFY2014 and from JFY2016, seasonal

surveys are to be conducted as quarterly marine environmental monitoring after the start of CO2

injection.

This project considers to be exempted from the London Protocol in that CO2 will be injecting

onshore utilizing deviated wells. However, this project may be possibly recognized as the world’s

first CCS project to be operated under the framework of the Protocol.

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Table 1. Monitoring items

Tomakomai City has a population of 173,000, and as the operation is taking place in the port area,

intensive stakeholder engagement has been implemented since JFY2011. Securing the strong support

of the Tomakomai government, a wide range of activities; providing information on Japan CCS’s

website, exhibitions and forums for residents, receiving site visits, engaging in consultation and

collaboration with government officials and fishing unions, conducting interviews with local and

national media, etc., is being carried out.

3. Present status of CO2 injection

The CO2 injection tests performed in April and May 2016 were very successful, confirming that

CO2 could be injected at rates close to the design capacity of 210,000 tonnes/year. Full-scale CO2

injection was planned from the second half of 2016. The full-scale CO2 injection was restarted in

early February 2017. The total injection volume reached 10,000 tonnes in the middle of February.

No tremors attributable to CO2 injection have been detected to date after commencement of CO2

injection. The forward plan is to implement CO2 injection for 2 more years until JFY2018, and

continue monitoring for an additional 2 years until the end of JFY2020.

Japan CCS is actively conducting international activities for knowledge sharing of CCS

worldwide. The Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Project was formally certified as a CSLF (Carbon

Sequestration Leadership Forum) Recognized Project at the CSLF Annual Meeting in Tokyo in

October 2016. Japan CCS was also nominated the Asia-Pacific regional champion for stakeholder

engagement.

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4. Conclusion

The Tomakomai CCS demonstration project planned for the period JFY 2012 to 2020 aims to

demonstrate and verify the technical viability of a full cycle CCS system from capture through

injection and storage. Unique features of the project include an energy efficient CO2 capture facility,

and onshore to offshore injection into two separate reservoirs by two dedicated deviated injection wells.

The demonstration facilities comprising the CO2 capture facility, CO2 injection facility, two

injection wells, three observation wells and various onshore and offshore monitoring systems were

completed during the first four-year period (JFY 2012 – 2015). The project will capture and store

100,000 tonnes per year or more of CO2 from JFY 2016 to 2018. The CO2 injection into the shallow

Moebetsu Formation started in April 2016, and the test injection results indicated that the injectivity

of this reservoir is very high. The cumulative injection volume reached 10,000 tonnes in the middle of

February, and the injection will continue until March 2019.

The project is being carried out in the port area of Tomakomai City, and a wide range of public

outreach programs have been developed and are being run in parallel with the implementation of the

project.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to express thanks to METI for its kind permission to disclose information

on the Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Project.

References

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11, Energy Procedia 37 ( 2013 ) p. 6326– 6334

[3] Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Geological evaluation report of the Tomakomai Area (in Japanese), 2011

[4] Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Basic Plan of CCS demonstration project at the Tomakomai Area (in Japanese), 2011

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Project in Japan, 2014 Update, Proceedings of GHGT-12, Energy Procedia 63 ( 2014 ) p. 6111 – 6119

[8] Global CCS Institute, The Global Status of CCS 2015 Vol. 2 p.8