Bringing CCUS to Indonesian gas fuelled power

Above: Jawa1 LNG fuelled combined cycle plant (photo: Pertamina)

The MoU builds on an announcement made in October 2022, by GE and CARBONCO (subsidiary of DL E&C) to jointly explore a roadmap for the integration of CCUS technology with gas-fired power plants in Asia and the Oceania regions. Both parties have since identified and developed tangible opportunities based on economic viability and project feasibility. The new MoU with bp, PLN Nusantara Power, and Jawa 1 is described as “an important milestone in paving the way to accelerate the adoption of CCUS technologies in Asia.”

Under the agreement, PLN Nusantara, Jawa 1, CARBONCO, bp and GE Vernova will collaborate to address the entire CCUS value chain, from the implementation of carbon capture technology in gas-fired power plants to the transportation of CO2 to import and export terminals as well as the sequestration of captured CO2 at the Tangguh field in Teluk Bintuni, Papua Barat, Indonesia. The study endeavours to achieve a deeper understanding of the development of a CCUS value chain for Indonesia as the hub for the region.

GE Vernova will build on its experience in advanced technology and controls to integrate combined cycle power plants with CARBONCO’s CCUS technology. It “will lead integration with the goal of ensuring dispatchability, lower carbon intensity, high flexibility and reliability, and lower capital cost.”

BP Berau Ltd, wholly owned by bp, is the operator of the Tangguh gas field and LNG facilities. Tangguh is the highest-producing gas field in Indonesia, contributing about 20% of national gas production. By the time LNG Train 3 is operational, Tangguh’s three-train business would contribute about 35% of national production, says bp.

The Tangguh CCUS project carried out by bp is “the most advanced CCUS project in Indonesia” with a development plan that received approval from the government of Indonesia in 2021, for ongoing FEED work and planned project sanction in the near future.

With around 1.8 GtCO2 of ultimate storage capacity, Tangguh is well-positioned and has tremendous potential to become the country’s first CCS hub for domestic and international emitters. For the initial phase at Tangguh, bp plans to inject 30+ million tons of CO2 back into the reservoir to help recover additional gas production through enhanced gas recovery (EGR). This will be the first large scale CCUS project with EGR in the world.

Having been operating for more than five decades in Indonesia, “bp says it brings global knowledge and expertise, technology and the financial capability necessary to advance CCUS/ CCS initiatives in the country.”

The 1760 MW Jawa 1 combined cycle power plant (also known as PLTGU Jawa-1), currently under construction, employs two GE Vernova 9HA.02 gas turbines in single-shaft configuration. It is integrated with an LNG floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), which provides the fuel.

Jawa 1 can be seen in the context of the Indonesian government’s 35 GW Initiative of 2017, a plan to make power more accessible and affordable throughout the country, as can Jawa 9 and 10 (see MPS - Green Ammonia to fuel Indonesia’s coal-fired plants?).