Harvestone Low Carbon Partners (HLCP), a portfolio company of Energy Capital Partners (ECP), has commenced carbon dioxide (CO2) injection as a part of its Blue Flint Ethanol carbon capture and storage (CCS) project facility near Underwood, North Dakota, according to a news release.
The Blue Flint facility began active CO2 injection in October 2023 after receiving final approval from the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources. Blue Flint is the first facility in the United States to begin actively capturing and injecting CO2 after the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.
The Blue Flint Ethanol plant produces more than 200,000 metric tonnes per year of CO2, as a byproduct of the fermentation process. Using CCS, Blue Flint is capturing 100% of its CO2 emissions from the fermentation process and is injecting approximately 600 metric tons of CO2 per day. The CO2 is permanently stored underground about one mile below the surface in the Broom Creek formation.
“We are excited to reach this milestone in our larger initiative called Vision Carbon ZERO, a multi-phased approach to reducing our fuel’s carbon intensity to zero,” said Harvestone CEO, Jeff Zueger. “This project is a significant step towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions and creating a steady market for North Dakota as we build a renewable, and sustainable energy future.”
Harvestone is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting sustainable practices for local communities, according to the release. As a leading clean energy investor with a long track record of successful investments, ECP will facilitate HLCP’s vision to develop renewable energy that benefits local communities.
Pete Labbat, ECP managing partner, added, “I would like to extend my congratulations to the HLCP team for being an early mover in bringing carbon capture and sequestration capabilities to the U.S. ethanol industry. The HLCP investment highlights ECP’s ability to identify innovative investment opportunities within the energy transition.”
“Renewable fuels and carbon capture are critical to global decarbonization efforts,” added ECP Partner Matt Delaney, “and we are excited to partner with a talented HLCP team that shares our vision of developing a differentiated low carbon business.”
CCS is the process of capturing CO2 from a large stationary source, compressing the CO2 into a liquid and injecting it via a Class VI injection well deep underground for permanent geologic storage. North Dakota was the first state to be granted primacy from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2018. Wyoming followed in 2020.
