Kansai Power to build liquified CO2 shipping terminal

Japanese utility Kansai Electric Power will work with research firm Japan CCS to build a liquefied carbon dioxide (CO2) shipping terminal at Kansai's 1,800MW Maizuru coal-fired power complex in Kyoto.

Kansai yesterday announced that it signed an agreement with Japan CCS to develop a liquefied CO2 shipping terminal at Maizuru power complex that connects to the Sea of Japan. Around 10,000 t/yr of CO2 captured at the Maizuru power station will be liquefied at the shipping base for transport on a coastal vessel. It will then be unloaded at the Tomakomai CCUS and carbon recycling demonstration centre in Hokkaido.

The demonstration project is scheduled to start this year and end by March 2027. Two companies plan to start a demonstration of CO2 transportation in early 2024.

Areas where CO2 were emitted are mostly located far away from storage/utilisation site. Establishing technology for transporting CO2 safely at low costs is the biggest challenge in the wide spread use of CCUS technology, Kansai said.

Japan CCS has placed an order of a large liquefied CO2 tanker to Japanese shipping firm Mitsui OSK Line for delivering 10,000 t/yr of liquified CO2 to storage site.

By Reina Maeda