CO2 Solutions Inc. ("CO2 Solutions" or "the Corporation") (TSX-V:CST), an innovator in the field of enzyme-enabled carbon capture technology, today announced that it has entered into a Collaboration Agreement with Colorado-based Neumann Systems Group, Inc. ("NSG" or "Neumann Systems"), an established emissions control solutions provider.
Under the terms of the agreement, CO2 Solutions and NSG will demonstrate a combination of their two proprietary technologies at pilot scale in what is expected to be a significantly lower cost process for the capture of CO2 from industrial effluent gases. Following this pilot, the companies anticipate co-marketing a combined solution for profitable application in enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and other existing and new CO2 sequestration and reuse markets.
"This project with Neumann Systems has the potential to significantly accelerate the commercialization of both our companies' carbon capture technologies," said Evan Price, President and CEO of CO2 Solutions. "Successful completion of the pilot will enable us to jointly pursue commercial opportunities both companies have identified. This is also a timely start to a relationship between CO2 Solutions and a U.S. partner given the June 2, 2014 landmark announcement by the Obama administration of carbon emissions regulations for the U.S. power sector."
The pilot combines CO2 Solutions' enzyme-based technology with NSG's high mass transfer gas-liquid contactor technology, known as NeuStream®. NSG's technology has a significantly smaller footprint than current technologies, with development to date demonstrating the potential to reduce CO2 capture equipment capital costs by up to 50 per cent.
CO2 Solutions has demonstrated that, using conventional CO2 capture equipment, its enzyme-based solution can generate cost savings in excess of 30 per cent compared to conventional solvent-based processes. Additionally, the Corporation's solution enables the use of low-grade, nil-value heat from industrial sources, dramatically reducing process energy costs.
Initial large bench-scale testing of CO2 Solutions' enzyme-enabled carbon capture solvent with NeuStream® has already yielded very positive results. The upcoming pilot demonstration will capture approximately 10 tonnes per day of CO2. The pilot is scheduled to run for one month, beginning in April 2015, at NSG's Colorado Springs facility. CO2 produced at the facility is expected to be suitable for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and other commercial applications.
NSG has an on-going approximate US$9.5 million CO2 capture system development project that is supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory with over US$1.4 million of NSG matching funding. Building on the NETL funded development project, CO2 Solutions will contribute an additional approximate US$450,000 toward the April 2015 pilot for equipment modifications, operations changes and testing for the optimized use of the Corporation's enzyme-based solvent technology with NeuStream®.
"We are looking forward to teaming up with CO2 Solutions to demonstrate this potentially game-changing technology combination for carbon capture," said Dave Neumann, President and CEO of NSG. "We anticipate realizing very significant synergies from the collaboration, making this an important opportunity to rapidly penetrate large existing markets for the profitable use of CO2, as well as provide a viable solution for carbon emissions reduction for large emitters."
