Low-carbon GeoEnergy resource options in the Midland Valley of Scotland, UK

Heinemann, N., Alcalde, J., Johnson, G., Roberts, J.J., McCay, A.T. and Booth, M.G. (2019) Low-carbon GeoEnergy resource options in the Midland Valley of Scotland, UK. Scottish Journal of Geology, 55(2), pp. 93-106. (doi: 10.1144/sjg2019-007)

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Abstract

Scotland is committed to be a carbon-neutral society by 2040 and has achieved the important initial step of decarbonising power production. However, more ambitious measures are required to fully decarbonise all of the electricity, transport and heating sectors. We explore the potential to use the low-carbon GeoEnergy resources and bio-energy combined with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) in the Midland Valley area to decarbonise the Scottish economy and society. The Midland Valley has a long history of geological resource extraction, and as a result, the geology of the region is well-characterised. Geothermal energy and subsurface energy storage have the potential to be implemented. Some of them, such as gravity and heat storage, could re-use the redundant mining infrastructure to decrease investment costs. Hydrogen storage could be of particular interest as the Midland Valley offers the required caprock-reservoir assemblages. BECCS is also a promising option to reduce overall CO2 emissions between 1.10-4.40 MtCO2/yr. The Midland Valley has enough space to grow the necessary crops, but CO2 storage will most likely be implemented in North Sea saline aquifers. The studied aspects suggest that the Midland Valley represents a viable option in Scotland for the exploitation of the majority of low-carbon GeoEnergy resources.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:Niklas Heinemann is funded by EPSRC Grant EP/P026214/1 and the European Union’s H2020 Accelerating CCS technologies. Juan Alcalde is funded by EIT Raw Materials – SIT4ME project (17024). Gareth Johnson is funded by EPSRC Grant EP/P026214/1 and the University of Strathclyde Faculty of Engineering. Jennifer Roberts is funded the University of Strathclyde Faculty of Engineering. Alistair McCay has received financial support for Scottish geothermal exploration from the Energy Technology Partnership and the Scottish Government through the Low-Carbon Infrastructure Transition Fund.
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Mccay, Dr Alistair
Authors: Heinemann, N., Alcalde, J., Johnson, G., Roberts, J.J., McCay, A.T., and Booth, M.G.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Infrastructure and Environment
Journal Name:Scottish Journal of Geology
Publisher:Geological Society Publishing House
ISSN:0036-9276
ISSN (Online):2041-4951
Published Online:04 November 2019
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2019 The Authors
First Published:First published in Scottish Journal of Geology 55(2): 93-106
Publisher Policy:Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher

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