ALLENTOWN, Pa., Feb. 2, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL) announced today the
company and its research partners have been selected for a
$72 million award negotiation by the
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Clean Energy
Demonstrations (OCED) to help fund a ground-breaking carbon dioxide
(CO2) capture research and development project expected
to cost in excess of $100
million.
The research project and new carbon capture system – developed
in partnership with the University of
Kentucky and others – will be hosted at PPL subsidiaries
Louisville Gas and Electric Company's (LG&E) and Kentucky
Utilities Company's (KU) Cane Run 7 natural gas combined-cycle
generating station in Louisville,
Ky.
"Across PPL, we continue to pursue a comprehensive clean energy
strategy to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050," said PPL
President and Chief Executive Officer Vincent Sorgi. "As part of our strategy, we're
focused on driving innovation and advancing technologies that can
be scaled safely, reliably and affordably to meet our customers'
energy needs, including carbon capture and sequestration
technologies."
About the project
The new 20-megawatt research system
planned for Cane Run is designed to capture a portion of the
CO2 from the natural gas plant's flue gas using an
advanced heat-integrated CO2 capture technology.
The goal is to capture up to 240 tons of CO2 per day
and up to 90,000 metric tons of CO2 per year – an amount
equivalent to the annual CO2 emissions of 20,000
gasoline-powered cars, according to OCED. This is an important step
in assessing the future viability of utility-scale carbon capture
technology on natural gas units.
Current plans include the captured CO2 being
beneficially reused and purified in its entirety by a nearby
manufacturer.
In addition, this project is designed to expand existing
training and internship programs to create a workforce development
plan that involves collaborating with local community leaders and
organizations and partnering with local colleges and universities,
including a Historically Black College and University, for
implementation.
In addition to the University of
Kentucky, collaborators on the project include EPRI;
Kentucky State University; Visage
Energy; and American Welding & Gas. Vogt Power International
Inc., a Babcock Power Inc. subsidiary, and Siemens Energy,
manufacturers of the Cane Run 7 Generating Station, are
contributing technical support as part of the project team on
integrating the new CO2 capture system. Koch Modular
Process Systems and others will support the design,
fabrication and construction of the carbon capture unit.
The power of collaboration
PPL subsidiaries LG&E
and KU have partnered with the University of
Kentucky for nearly two decades on various carbon capture
research projects and were founders of the university's carbon
capture research program in 2006. Together with EPRI, the company
and university deployed a pilot-scale carbon capture facility in
2014 at the KU E.W. Brown Generating Station.
"For almost two decades, the University of
Kentucky has partnered with PPL on carbon capture projects
that laid the foundation for industry-leading research. By scaling
up UK's carbon capture technology and utilizing technology
transfer, Kentucky can not only
put carbon dioxide to industrial use, it can enhance the state's
position in energy-intensive manufacturing sectors," said Dr.
Eli Capilouto, President of the
University of Kentucky.
The latest research initiative at Cane Run is one of more than
150 research and development projects that PPL is currently
collaborating on with over 30 industry and academic partners.
Projects range from accelerating low-carbon energy technologies to
strengthening network resiliency and building the grid of the
future.
"There is tremendous value in collaboration when it comes to
unlocking and accelerating clean energy innovation," said Sorgi.
"And in this endeavor, we're thankful for the Department of
Energy's support and eager to get to work with our research
partners in driving innovation that can ultimately benefit our
customers and the planet."
About PPL
PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), headquartered
in Allentown, Pennsylvania, is a
leading U.S. energy company focused on providing electricity and
natural gas safely, reliably and affordably to more than 3.5
million customers in the U.S. PPL's high-performing, award-winning
utilities are addressing energy challenges head-on by building
smarter, more resilient and more dynamic power grids and advancing
sustainable energy solutions. For more information, visit
www.pplweb.com.
About the Office of Clean Energy
Demonstrations
The U.S. Department of Energy's Office
of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) was established to accelerate
clean energy technologies and fill a critical innovation gap on the
path to achieving our nation's climate goals of net zero emissions
by 2050. OCED's mission is to deliver clean energy demonstration
projects at scale in partnership with the private sector to
accelerate deployment, market adoption, and the equitable
transition to a decarbonized energy system. Visit energy.gov/oced
to learn more.
Note to Editors: Visit our media website at
www.pplnewsroom.com for additional news about PPL
Corporation.
Contacts:
|
For news media: Ryan
Hill, 610-774-4033
For financial analysts:
Andy Ludwig, 610-774-3389
|
|
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ppl-affiliate-partners-selected-for-72-million-research-grant-from-the-us-department-of-energys-office-of-clean-energy-demonstrations-302052298.html
SOURCE PPL Services Corporation