CSEGR - Carbon sequestration and enhanced gas recovery

Begin of project: May 1, 2005

End of project: October 31, 2008

Status of project: July 21, 2008

One CO₂ storage possibility are depleted natural gas reservoirs. Today, already more than 50% of German gas reservoirs are in an advanced stage of depletion and could thus serve as potential storage sites for carbon dioxide. The inter-disciplinary joint research project CSEGR is a feasibility study on enhanced natural gas recovery (EGR) by simultaneous injection of CO₂ into almost depleted natural gas reservoirs and its long term storage in these reservoirs.

Sandstone well core altered by natural CO2 Source: BGR

Since EGR in Germany has not been practically tested yet, the first goal is to determine whether the concept is applicable to conditions of German deposits of natural gas. This is done by means of numerical transport modelling. Investigation areas are the Altmark Rotliegend reservoir in Saxony-Anhalt and the Barrien Buntsandstein reservoir in Lower Saxony. In addition to the complete suite of reservoir data, the adjacent lignite fired power plants are considered as CO₂ sources and the existing pipelines as transportation facility. The model calculations will yield answers to practical questions like the injection strategy, addressing the optimization of natural gas production, efficiency of CO₂ storage, and prediction of geochemical and mechanical reactions of the reservoir and caprocks.

Partner:

TU-Clausthal; Vattenfall AB, Stockholm; Erdgas Erdöl GmbH Berlin; Wintershall AG Kassel; E.ON-Ruhrgas GmbH Essen