Dive Brief:
- North Carolina-based NET Power LLC has finalized agreements to develop a 50-MW, $140 million gas-fired facility that the company says will be 100% emission free.
- The company said the project would be the first of its kind, capable of full CO2 capture without requiring expensive, efficiency-reducing carbon capture equipment.
- The project will be located at a site in Texas and is being funded by Exelon Corp. and CB&I;. Commissioning is anticipated in 2016 with the project complete in 2017.
Dive Insight:
The 50-MW project will be funded by a combination of cash and in-kind contributions from Exelon and CB&I, but also includes Toshiba and 8 Rivers Capital.
Toshiba has begun manufacturing a new CO2 turbine for the project following years of development, and operations, maintenance and development arrangements have been completed with Exelon. Using a new CO2 power cycle known as the Allam Cycle, developers say the plant will deliver electricity at rates competitive to traditional gas generation while also capturing all emissions. The cycle will produce CO2 as a pipeline-quality byproduct, rather than an exhaust mixed with other gases.
Contracts for plant engineering, procurement and construction are in place with CB&I. 8 Rivers Capital, the inventor of the technology, will provide continued technology development services and the intellectual property for the project.
“This program highlights the private sector’s unique ability to develop breakthrough technologies without having to settle for anything less than compelling economics,” said NET Power CEO Bill Brown.
“This technology is a potential game changer in reducing carbon emissions from power generation,” Exelon President and CEO Chris Crane said.
