Bell Creek CO2 Storage Demonstration Project
The PCOR Partnership is collaborating with Denbury to use the Bell Creek commercial enhanced oil recovery (EOR) operation to learn more about the science
of CO2 behavior in the subsurface. This knowledge will assist future projects to move seamlessly from CO2 EOR projects to long-term CO2 storage projects.
Collaborative Effort
The PCOR Partnership teamed with Denbury to provide further information on the geology of the site as well as additional monitoring of injected CO
2. This information
will be used to develop a more detailed picture of the site geology and behavior of CO
2, oil, and water in the subsurface. Based on field experience, this improved
understanding will be the basis of a comprehensive approach to monitor injected CO
2, account for the CO
2 during and after the EOR operation, and verify that the CO
2
remains in place in the injection zone once EOR operations are complete. The result is improved safety, EOR efficiency, and having the systems in place for
CO
2 storage operations.
Integrated Approach
The nature of the geology at a location, both at the surface and deep underground, is the key to successful CO
2 EOR and CO
2 storage. The PCOR Partnership is developing
an approach that takes knowledge of the geology and uses it to build an interactive computer model. This allows us to:
- Develop plans to properly track CO2 in the subsurface.
- Respond to the potential for CO2 migration.
- Account for the CO2 injected.
- Verify the CO2 volume and position in the subsurface.
This approach helps meet the safety expectations of local landowners and communities, while reassuring CO
2 owners that the commodity will remain securely stored in the formation.
A New Standard for CO2 EOR
By implementing our integrated approach at Bell Creek, the demonstration project will result in a new standard for safe and practical geologic CO
2 EOR-to-CO
2
storage operations.
The real-world results generated by the Bell Creek project will provide stakeholders, including policy makers, regulators, industry, financiers, and the public,
with the knowledge necessary to make informed decisions regarding the effectiveness of carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a carbon management strategy.
With this knowledge, stakeholders will have the data necessary to expand the implementation of safe, practical, well-documented CCS projects.