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Abstract
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) has become a popular catch phrase, both in
scientific arena as well as on the political discussion. India, a country with
a rapidly growing economy, where rise in economic growth goes hand in hand with
an increase in energy demand which is currently met, as in many evolving
economies, by fossil fuels. This ultimately leads to increase in GHG emissions.
With the imminent threat of anthropogenic climate change in the coming decades,
helping to control India's emissions will have to be a global priority. CCS can
play a pivotal role in curbing India's emissions in the future, given its
reliance on coal power and the large coal reserves. The main objective of this
paper is to increase the understanding of the opportunities, issues and
obstacles amongst the stakeholders regarding CCS in India. To achieve this
objective, we have analyzed economic and institutional factors which
encapsulate Indian power sector, challenges associated with the implementation
of CCS, uncertainties linked with potential Co2 sources and sinks in India,
needs and requirements for the future potential implementation of CCS in India.
We have concluded our paper with relevant recommendations for the International
Climate and CCS community to make conditions conducive for CCS in India.
CARBON CAPTURE & SEQUESTRATION
Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. Many
scientists believe this contributes, at least in part, to the current upward
trend in the Earth’s surface temperature. According to Intergovermental Panel
of Climate Change (IPCC), the increase in the average global surface
temperature, since the late 19th century, is the largest warming rate for the
last 1000 years, as derived from ice-core and tree ring data. The increase of
CO2 concentration is the major cause of climate change, which would have severe
consequences to human health, economic development, and the environment. Global
warming and its potential impact has emerged as a hot topic for government,
academia & industry, and covered extensively in current literature. Between
those who deny the problem exists and those who hyperbolize the global warming
consenquences and required actions, there is a seed taking root in middle
ground is the process of capturing and securely storing CO2 - called Carbon
Capture & Sequestration, sometimes also reffered as Carbon Capture &
Storage (CCS).The storage of CO2 in the subsurface, that would otherwise be
released into the atmosphere, has emerged as one of the most promising
technologies to stabilize and reduce the atmospheric CO2 concentration. CCS
allows the continued use of a diverse mix of energy sources, including fossil
fuels, which improves the secure supply of cost-effective electricity. CCS
describes a set of technologies which can be used to collect CO2 from
industrial processes and power generation, separate and purify it, transport it
to a storage site, compress it to a form suitable for storage and then place it
in long term storage where it remains indefinitely.
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