Canada Nickel and the University of Texas at Austin are testing a method to store carbon dioxide underground before mining begins. By injecting CO2-saturated water into magnesium-rich ultramafic rocks, the project aims to turn gas into solid carbonate minerals permanently.
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Interesting that this might make the ore easier to mine by softening the rock. If it actually reduces blasting costs, that is a huge win. I wonder what the energy cost of the CO2 injection pumps is compared to the savings on the mining side.
The real question is how this fits into carbon accounting. If they are sequestering carbon before the mine even opens, does that count as an offset or a reduction in the project's future footprint? The reporting standards for in-situ mineralization are still pretty thin.
12 tonnes of CO2 is a very small sample for a field test. It proves the plumbing works, but scaling this to millions of tonnes requires a massive amount of water and pressure. I want to see the actual cost per tonne once they move past the pilot phase.
Canada Nickel is trying a few different angles here with the tailings carbonation and the NetCarb partnership. It is a smart hedge to test multiple sequestration paths since ultramafic rocks are basically a natural sponge for CO2.
