Investing in innovation and continuing to enhance our environmental performance is an imperative embraced by the oil sands industry. Through Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance (COSIA), the industry is taking a leading role in reducing emissions by developing, testing, and implementing technologies that make it possible to address climate-related risks while also meeting global energy demand.
Investing in clean technology
Canadian companies invest about $1.4 billion a year in clean technology—75 per cent of which comes from the oil and natural gas industry. Through COSIA, members have developed over 1,075 environmental innovations, at a cost of $1.6 billion. These and other innovations have resulted in a 20 per cent reduction in GHG emissions intensity between 2009 and 2018. And that work continues. Currently, COSIA and our members are advancing technologies in:
- carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS)
- low to no emission methods of in situ production
- solvent extraction processes that reduce emissions for mined oil sands
- measurement and management of emissions from secondary sources
- energy efficiency
- low carbon heat and power through things like electrification, solar steam, and geothermal
Technologies like these are poised to dramatically reduce sector emissions, paving the way for the bold climate commitments already made by many in the sector. Significant progress is already being made, including in the rapidly advancing space of CCUS.
Supporting a low carbon future
As part of our climate related efforts, COSIA was pleased to partner in the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE, which brought together some of the brightest minds from around the world to develop technologies to take CO2 emissions from natural gas and coal combustion and convert these emissions into usable products including plastics, building materials and even vodka.
Winners of the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE were announced on April 19, 2021. CarbonCure, based in Dartmouth, NS captured the US$7.5 million prize in the natural gas track with its technology to make stronger, greener concrete.
“The NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE has proven that converting CO2 into everyday products can be a game-changing pathway in our broader efforts to reduce emissions. Through breakthrough technologies, we can tackle the major causes of climate change, create new economic opportunities and build a bridge to a cleaner, abundant and affordable energy future,” says Wes Jickling, COSIA’s Chief Executive. “The economic opportunities associated with the emerging circular carbon economy have been pegged at $6-trillion.”
Sponsorship of the Carbon XPRIZE through COSIA was led by ConocoPhillips, with support from Canadian Natural, Cenovus, Imperial, Suncor and non-COSIA member CNOOC.
Following the Carbon XPRIZE, utilities, energy producers and other industries will now have access to multiple technological solutions that could help reduce emissions through CO2 conversion and lower the cost of deploying cleaner energy globally.
Partnering for progress
An exciting legacy of the competition is the Alberta Carbon Conversion Technology Centre (ACCTC), a purpose-built facility that helps develop and commercialize carbon utilization technologies. Based in Calgary, the ACCTC is a strategic provincial and national asset for accelerating carbon utilization technologies and is now available as a test centre to enable national and international research and technology development.
Meeting Canada’s climate targets is going to take collaborative effort from government, industries and academia to ensure the right policy, investment, regulatory, and technological foundations exist to enable a reliable and affordable energy transition. Underpinned by shared policy and investment goals, Canada has a ready partner in the oil sands industry to take on the challenge of meeting our collective climate goals while meeting global energy demand and supporting economic development.
