CCUS picks up pace in South Korea

On the 25^th May 2023, REALISE project researchers presented their work at the CCUS conference organized by Korea CCUS Association in Busan, South Korea. 

The event helped to strengthen collaborations between REALISE project partners and SK Innovation, REALISE partner in South Korea. It also helped to establish contacts with Korea CCUS Association, including government, researchers, and industry, and in developing new strategies to reduce carbon emissions from industry and power generation through CCUS. It also helped establish contact with Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) working on the development of carbon capture and utilization technologies

South Korea is a Mission Innovation country that has set a target of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050. In April, the Government announced that it will invest up to USD 1.2 billion to assess CO₂ storage resources and develop CCUS technologies. The aim, initially, is to secure 1 billion tonnes of CO₂ storage capacity in abandoned oil and gas fields, and to develop more effective and cheaper technologies to capture CO₂ emissions from different industries in collaboration with international partners.

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In a session chaired by Jiyoen Lim (SK Innovation) and Peter van Os (TNO), attendees learnt about the carbon capture technology being tested at Irving Oil Whitegate Refinery in Cork, Ireland, and at SINTEF’s CO₂ laboratory at Tiller, Trondheim, Norway.

In addition, attendees were able to hear about the public education programme that is being developed as part of the REALISE project and how SCCS (Scottish Carbon Capture and Storage) is helping to facilitate the adoption of CCUS at refineries and other industry sectors. 

At the workshop on the 26^th May, CCUS business cases in Korea and China were discussed and assessed. Such workshops, such as the one in Italy last October, are helping Mission Innovation countries achieve net zero emissions by strengthening collaborations and developing effective strategies to decarbonise refineries through CCUS.

“I was very happy to see many Korean participants in our session. We received very good feedback on the presentations and on the work we are doing. We plan to continue collaboration with Korea CCUS Association and UNIST,” says Inna Kim, REALISE-CCUS Project Coordinator, SINTEF, Norway.