Central ND News

Senator John Hoeven has announced a $5.1 million award to advance carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) monitoring at the Great Plains Synfuels Plant. The project, led by the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC), aims to support the expansion of CCUS at the Dakota Gasification Company’s Great Plains Synfuels Plant, making it the largest coal-based CCUS project utilizing geologic storage globally.

"This $5.1 million award is a crucial investment in the future of CCUS and baseload power," stated Senator Hoeven. "Under this project, EERC is developing cost-effective methods for monitoring and verifying CO2 storage. That’s key not only to the DGC project, which is the largest of its kind in the world, but to all of the coal-based CCUS projects across our state."

The funding is part of Senator Hoeven's efforts to ensure continued access to affordable and reliable baseload power sources, such as coal. Hoeven emphasized the importance of such investments in the face of regulatory challenges, stating, "This is about ensuring the affordability and reliability of the grid, but these investments can’t come to fruition if the Biden administration continues to attack our baseload power sources, like coal."

The project at the Great Plains Synfuels Plant involves the evaluation of technologies to improve the monitoring and verification of CO2 sequestered using geologic storage, with the aim of facilitating developers' access to incentives like the 45Q tax credit. The additional funding secured by Hoeven brings the total investment in the project to $6.5 million.

Senator Hoeven, a member of the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Committee, reaffirmed his commitment to supporting initiatives that advance CCUS technology and ensure the viability of coal-based CCUS projects amidst regulatory challenges.