Tallgrass to sequester CO2 from corn processing complex

Trailblazer is an approximately 450-mile-long pipeline that extends from Cheyenne, Wyo., to Beatrice, Neb. (Map: Tallgrass Energy.)

Tallgrass Energy plans to capture carbon dioxide CO2 from a corn processing plant in Columbus, Nebraska owned by food processing giant ADM and transport it to an underground storage hub in Eastern Wyoming, the two companies announced.

By utilizing a converted natural gas pipeline for CO2 transportation, Tallgrass minimizes the need for new pipeline infrastructure while enabling ADM to further decarbonize its global operations and strengthen Nebraska’s agriculture industry.

Tallgrass plans to convert its Trailblazer natural gas pipeline to a CO2 pipeline and use the approximately 400-mile line as a backbone of a regional CO2 transportation system. The pipeline, which runs through Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska, will be capable of transporting more than 10 million tons of CO2 per year for permanent sequestration, Tallgrass said.

The pipeline is ideally situated to transport CO2 from ADM’s plant and other commercial and industrial sources to a sequestration hub in eastern Wyoming. In preparation for this initiative, Tallgrass recently announced plans to develop a commercial-scale CO2 sequestration hub in eastern Wyoming expected to be in service in 2024.

“We are excited to work on this project with ADM, a company that’s already demonstrated it is on the cutting edge of carbon capture,” said Kyle Quackenbush, segment president at Tallgrass. “We’re able to repurpose existing infrastructure to create significant CO2 transportation capacity without impacting natural gas service in that region.”

Tallgrass said its CO2 transportation will enable customers to meet decarbonization goals and to minimize impact on landowners. “Our CO2 pipeline will be capable of transporting significant additional CO2 volumes to accommodate the capture, transportation, and sequestration of many other emissions sources in the region,” he said.

“ADM is meeting growing customer demand, advancing our strategy and living up to our purpose by continuing to lead in the decarbonization of our industry,” said Chris Cuddy, president of ADM’s carbohydrate solutions business. “Earlier this year, we announced an agreement that would allow us to sequester carbon from two of our biggest processing facilities in the U.S., and now we’re looking forward to working with Tallgrass to continue our work towards meeting our decarbonization goals.”

An investor group led by Blackstone Infrastructure Partners owns the majority of Tallgrass shares.

Earlier this year, Tallgrass announced it received a grant from the Wyoming Energy Authority to fund the development of a commercial-scale CO2 sequestration hub in the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin in eastern Wyoming. The grant is in addition to the company’s proposed direct investment in the Eastern Wyoming Sequestration Hub project, which is designed to provide a cost-effective means of capturing, transporting and sequestering CO2 across multiple states.

Tallgrass expects to utilize the WEA grant in 2022 to fund development activities and drilling a characterization well in connection with its anticipated Class VI permit filing for the hub.

Meanwhile, Trailblazer Pipeline, a division of Tallgrass, has proposed to move the pipeline out of the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and plans to lease capacity from Rockies Express Pipeline to provide gas transportation for its existing shippers, Platts reported.