TransAlta to pilot test Alstom's CCS technology

TransAlta Corp has partnered with Alstom to pilot test the French-based multinational's chilled ammonia process for carbon capture and storage (CCS). An initial $12-million contract will see the development and validation of the technology with subsequent phases leading to the beginning of testing in 2012. The new technology promises one of the lowest cost solutions for CCS and will be used at a TransAlta's coal-firmed generating station near Edmonton. TransAlta has also teamed with the Univ of Calgary's Institute for Sustainable Energy, Environment & Technology (ISEEE) to quantify CO2 sequestration's potential in the vicinity of the generating plant. ISEEE, which received $5 million in funding in the latest federal Budget, will provide a scientific assessment of potential sites....