New Technology Magazine: Oilsands electromagnetic heating project receives $16.5 M in climate funding
It was announced Wednesday that an in situ oilsands extraction process which involves electromagnetic heating and which will be advanced by a newly formed four-member consortium will receive $16.5 million from the Climate Change and Emissions Management Corporation (CCEMC).
Enhanced solvent extraction incorporating electromagnetic heating (ESEIEH), pronounced “easy,” is a collaborative initiative aimed at mitigating emissions and environmental impact through a conceptual technology that displaces steam in the in situ recovery process, reducing the need for water sourcing and handling as well as on site burning of fossil fuels to generate steam.
A consortium of four companies – Laricina Energy Ltd., Nexen Inc., Suncor Energy Inc. and Harris Corporation of Melbourne, Florida -- is advancing a field test of the process, bringing together expertise and technology to develop ESEIEH.
Funding for the CCEMC comes from the Alberta government which collects it from industry based on greenhouse gas emissions.
The ESEIEH project constitutes a field demonstration pilot to evaluate the combination of electromagnetic heating for rapid horizontal well pair start-up and sustained formation heating with concurrent injection of a solvent. The project incorporates staged yard-scale testing, numerical modelling studies and a small-scale field trial.
In meeting the objective to reduce primary emissions from generating steam, ESEIEH optimizes two physical properties for viscosity reduction: heating and dilution with solvents, Schmidt told a CCEMC press conference in Edmonton today.
Proponents are projecting energy reductions could exceed 40% over the steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) recovery process and a commensurate reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
The project is expected to run for four years and will consist of two phases. Phase 1 will consist of a technical feasibility study and will include a surface mine face test with total funding of about $6 million. Phase 1 is targeted to begin in September and run for one year. Phase 2 will consist of an in situ field pilot test that uses a 200-metre horizontal well with a total funding of an additional $27 million.
The balance of funding is incremental to the CCEMC grant and will be provided by the partners in each of their respective percentage ownership.
The ESEIEH project is one of 16 projects chosen by the CCEMC from more than 200 initial submissions.
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