Spectra eyes big carbon capture project in Canada

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) – Spectra Energy Corp. will study building a large-scale carbon sequestration facility at its natural gas plant in northeastern British Columbia, the company and the British Columbia provincial government said on Monday.

The provincial government has agreed to pay C$3.4 million ($3.4 million) to look at the geological and economic feasibility of permanently storing captured carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide in a depleted natural gas reservoir two kilometers (1.3 miles) underground.

Provincial officials put the total price of the project at C$12.1 million.

Spectra said the reservoir in Fort Nelson has the potential to store about one million tonnes of carbon dioxide produced by industrial emitters annually, which would be the equivalent of taking 250,000 cars off the highway.

Reuters