PACE CCS: Pace Drives Momentum in CCS Network Rollout

The decarbonisation problem facing engineers around the world is easy to explain but very difficult to solve. Innovation and pioneering thinking are essential, and collaboration across industry spheres is already helping to build a model for the future. But the work is extremely challenging. How do we take carbon dioxide from industrial processes, remove it from emissions and store it so that its environmental impacts are mitigated? Enter Pace CCS, a company founded in 2017 but switching to a sole carbon capture and storage (CCS) focus in 2020.

In 2022, global energy-related CO₂ emissions reached new heights of more than 36.8 Gt. The amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere was higher than ever, at 417.06 ppm. And in CCS, just 30 projects were operational with 164 in various stages of development at the end of 2022. 

Pace CCS is dedicated to moving the industry forward through inventive design, clever engineering, and technology adoption that ensures quality performance. 

“We are a multi-disciplinary engineering design consultancy, specialising in CCS. We are truly global, we have offices in London, Kuala Lumpur, and Houston,” says Matthew Healey, Managing Director at Pace CCS. 

Capturing and transporting CO₂ from emission source, and storing in, typically, depleted oil and gas wells is a complex task. The industry is nascent, and best-practice is still being established despite the concept being proven. There is plenty of text available on how to perform CCS, but Pace looks to rearrange, reconfigure, and revolutionise to help grow a required industry with its own ideas and ecology. 

MORE EXPERTISE  

“We are forward thinking, we value the future of CCS, and we believe the model for CCS is still being developed,” says Healey. “We want to be part of creating an ecosystem that is separate from oil and gas or midstream. We are doing new things for a new industry.” 

An engineer with experience across the energy industry, Healey had his eureka moment with CCS in 2018. Today, the business has grown to a home of 50 highly experienced people with multimillion dollar turnover.  

“I had been working in the energy industry for a long time. An opportunity came up in 2017 to provide services to one major client in a niche area so Pace was established. In 2018/19, we started to pick up early work in the CCS space. I have been out there as, essentially, a salesman for a longtime and you know when you’re on to something that people want.” 

He says it was immediately obvious that CCS designs from Pace were appealing in the market. The team analysed market opportunities and saw that the market would be essential for decarbonising economies, with business and industry hoping for 400 Mtpa of carbon captured by 2030. 

“We made a strategic decision to drop oil and gas work altogether and focus entirely on CCS. We bumped along through the pandemic, but we predicted that work would come. Those forecasts turned out to be accurate and we are predicting a very good year this year.” 

The range of low carbon activities that are replacing fossil fuels of the past are complemented by CCS. In most cases, CCS projects lock CO₂ away deep underground in geological formations, permanently. The capacity of storage strata, the way CO₂ reacts with its surroundings while in storage, the technology to ensure permanence, and long-term operation and maintenance of a storage site are all key considerations for project stakeholders, but the work of Pace is about transporting carbon dioxide to the storage site through dedicated pumps, compressors, pipelines, and other technology sets. 

At capture stage, technology diverts flue gas at large emitting sites using chemical compounds such as amine. Separation chambers then split the gas before nitrogen and water vapours are safely released. CO₂ is then compressed to liquid form before being injected, safely, more than 1000m below ground into porous rocks in a reverse of oil and gas extraction that we recognise as safe today.

Within Pace, engineering expertise is abundant and this is what separates it from others in the space. 

“We have worked on more projects, and we have more experts than anyone,” says Healey, highlighting the fact that the company has contributed to various industry standards including ISO 27913 (carbon dioxide capture, transportation and geological storage) and a comprehensive Hazard Analysis document for CCS projects (Hazard Analysis for Onshore and Offshore Carbon Capture Facilities and Pipelines) for the Energy Institute. “Our unique selling point is our experience and expertise,” he adds. 

COLLABORATIVE EFFORT  

Currently, Pace is putting its knowledge to use, partnering in multiple projects as the industry expert. Following success in December 2022, when the company was awarded £180,000 in Net Zero Technology Centre (NZTC) funding, and the exploration of problems with CCS pipeline corrosion, a number of notable milestones have been achieved. 

In March 2023, the company teamed with ABB to develop CCS infrastructure that can be adopted at lower cost for clients. By utilising digital twin technology developed specifically for the industry, clients will be able to virtually replicate concepts and scenarios to familiarise with processes, allowing for informed decision-making. 

“While companies can see the benefits of CCS, there is still a reluctance to make the investment without clear knowledge of how things will work on the ground, at every stage of the process,” says Healey. 

In June 2023, the company partnered with deepC Store to develop the CStore1 project, a floating CCS hub off the coast of Australia. CO₂ from various energy and industrial processes in Japan would be delivered by ship to the site before being injected into wells. 

August 2023 saw a Joint Industry Project from the NZTC and other industry players in which corrosion of CCS networks is again being studied with the goal of reducing cost over the longer-term. 

At the end of the year, the company announced that it would work with Hafnium Labs to build the world’s first reliable digital twin software for full chain CCS networks – essential in driving down cost and spreading understanding of how the networks behave. 

Knowledge of how CO₂ acts throughout the process is vital. Impurities present after capture can influence water solubility and create corrosive effects in liquids at higher temperature points. This is important information leading some CCS projects to explore the use of alternative ideas that avoid the use of methanol and triethylene glycol (TEG), currently the main impurities present in CCS networks. 

TECHNOLOGY COOPERATION

A partnership has also been built alongside John Crane, one of the world’s leading providers of engineered technology. John Crane pioneers mission-critical products, services, and solutions that enable the energy and process industries to achieve efficient, sustainable operations. Its portfolio includes technology critical in CCS and across the wider energy transition. Healey describes the relationship as mutually beneficial as Pace looks to bring best-in-class technology to projects, and John Crane looks to enable the energy transition by supporting relevant developments. 

“It has become clear that there is plenty of crossover,” Healey says. “Our partnership here is a clear example of the value we can bring – a knowledge base that is supported by engineering ability. 

“Carbon dioxide comes with its own challenges, especially with increasing volumes and in the case of new capture and storage applications. The partnership has been really helpful for us, taking learnings around what they are doing and liaising with clients around technology.” 

René Leven, Segment Leader, Hydrogen and CCUS, New Energy Solutions at John Crane, is also enthusiastic about the collaboration. 

“We supply the critical components in rotating machinery such as mechanical seals, high performance couplings and filters. John Crane has delivered solutions with reliability and sustainability at the core for more than a century, and we’re committed to strengthening every link in the value chain for new, growing industries like CCUS and hydrogen,” Leven says. “To do so, it is important to look at all the details. There are so many critical elements that enable this technology. It’s not only dry gas seals, separation seals and power transmission couplings, but also aspects such as efficient compression and pumping. This has led to interesting discussions with Pace CCS.” 

As an engineering technology company, John Crane is interested in evaluating how mechanical seals perform in new emerging CO₂ operating conditions. Pace has deep knowledge on the process side and the pair have already learned a lot together about optimal seal selection. The focus is on reducing and eliminating CO₂ leakage through CCS networks by use of, or development of, state-of-the-art equipment. According to Leven, there are commercial risks associated with incorrect technology selection. 

“We want to make sure that we provide the right technology to ensure a safe and reliable operation, especially for new CCS projects. It is a no-brainer: You can’t have CO₂ leaking straight back into the atmosphere right after you capture it,” he says. 

“You must have the right selection of products,” Leven adds. “An example is integrally geared compressors that traditionally use floating carbon ring seals even though more sophisticated technology is available. At higher pressures, floating carbon rings leak significant amounts of CO₂, which can increase emissions at a time when curbing them has never been more critical. This also poses a commercial issue. CCS initiatives are expensive in terms of the energy and money that goes into them. If you have significant amounts leaking after capture, then it is very wasteful.” 

John Crane has long pioneered the use of dry gas seals in CCS. Used mainly in compressors and high-performance CO₂ pumps, John Crane’s market-ready dry gas seals maximise reliability and sustainability. The company’s portfolio includes Type 2812 and Type 28VL, which are used in high-pressure and supercritical CO₂ pump applications respectively. 

“We are advocating the use of dry gas seals in all CO₂ compressors, as they leak much less compared to floating carbon rings,” says Leven. “However, especially at medium- and higher-pressure stages, dry gas seals offer clear advantages and are technically superior. We already see some manufacturers switching to dry gas seals in countries where regulations are getting tighter.” 

Through all the mechanical elements in a CCS network, Pace and John Crane advocate for the development and deployment of dedicated technology. This technology should apply lessons learned from previous oil and gas applications while addressing the unique dynamics of energy transition projects, Leven says. 

“We design the process that connects emission source to geological storage and it cannot be done without the right technology from companies including John Crane and others. All details have to be examined and reimagined; we can’t simply accept that because it works in oil and gas it will work in a CCS network,” says Healey. 

PROBLEM SOLVING CULTURE  

Pace is furthering development of a dedicated CCS industry by developing its own software. Few dedicated programs exist that are CCS-focussed and not reworks of oil and gas software. Used in predictive forecasting around thermodynamic performance across pipelines, wells, compressors in industrial processes, software from Pace surrounds early-stage design, and this can influence procurement later in the process. 

“The future CCS marketplace brings challenges and we position ourselves to solve problems that clients will have,” reiterates Healey. 

The innovation and enthusiasm to forge this exciting and essential new industry comes from a Pace team that has been built to excel. Healey, an experienced engineer, recalls his own history working for engineering consultancies that he labels ‘not good to work for’ and his mission has been to create an environment within Pace that gives engineers freedom. 

“We have a very happy team,” he smiles. “When we started the company, it was about creating a good company to work for. I have put a lot of effort into doing the right things and using behavioural psychology to create a company that frees engineers to do what they’re best at. 

“We have great retention, and we know that others want to poach our engineers,” he adds. “We have freedom around how and where people do their work – we only care about what they do. We trust that people want to do the best for the project and we create an environment that helps them do that. It has been very successful and we are proud of that. We deliver good work, and we have happy clients. We have a great record of getting enquiries for a small project and turning that into many years of successful partnership.” 

The extent of, and number of, partnerships that Pace has developed is another distinguishing factor for the company. Alongside unrivalled expertise and experience, the collaborative approach to product, service, and industry development has helped Pace to carve out and maintain pole position in a rapidly changing and expanding market. As CCS booms in the UK, and around the world, Pace will remain a pillar in the industry. Some suggestions expect the rocks under the North Sea could absorb 22 billion tonnes of CO₂ and the UK could boast 78 gigatonnes of storage nationally. With other regions showing signs of even further potential, and with pressure ramping up for countries and industries to decarbonise, Pace is the company that will engineer solutions that maximise the obvious high-value opportunities.