Glencore and Huaneng partner to deploy CCS at a coal plant in Australia

London, (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) - Swiss-based miner and oil trading house Glencore has signed a memorandum of understanding with China's Huaneng Group to cooperate on developing carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology at a coal-fired power plant in Australia, the companies said on 10 April.

Glencore, alongside Australia's government, will invest in deploying technology owned by Huaneng Clean Energy Research Group to capture carbon dioxide at the 1.7-GW Millmerran plant in Queensland and bury it 2km underground in Australia's Surat Basin.

Glencore is one of Australia's biggest emitters through its extensive coal and metal mining activities and sells coal and metals on an international basis and its collaboration with Huaneng will be the first international project on CCS that a Chinese entity has been involved in.

"Huaneng will work with Glencore to complete a high-quality carbon capture project in Australia's Surat Basin, build a high-quality cross-industry international cooperation project, help coal-fired power generation achieve "near zero emissions", and enhance its international influence," said Li Weidong, chairman of China Huaneng Group Clean Energy Research Institute.

It is hoped the company will demonstrate CCS technology at an industrial scale.

The project is supported by Low Emission Technology Australia (LETA), Australian National Low Emissions Coal Research and Development (ANLECR&D) and the Australian Government.

As Australia is one of the world's biggest emitters per capita, the government is keen to explore ways to cut emissions without hitting its economy hard.