DOE's Carbon Transport and Storage Program: Supporting Storage Infrastructure Build-Out Critical for Decarbonization
Authors: Rosen Gillian , Bopp Amanda Raddatz , Damiani Darin , Rodosta Traci , Pawar Rajesh , Smith Robert , Dooley Kevin 
Published: August 2024

For decades, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management's (FECM) Carbon Transport and Storage (CTS) Program has invested in projects to validate safe and secure geologic storage of captured carbon dioxide (CO2) through technology development and pilot- and large-scale field tests. Recent U.S. legislation, such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), provide the financial backing and policy incentives that have enabled the CTS Program to accelerate the deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS), storage-based carbon dioxide removal (CDR), and multi-modal CO2 transport systems, which are crucial for helping the administration meet its incremental decarbonization goals through 2050. With appropriations enacted under the BIL, the CTS Program is investing in projects that will help facilitate the build-out and expansion of industry-led CCS/CDR and CO2 transport projects that are safe, efficient, equitable, and environmentally responsible. In addition, annual appropriations for the base CTS Program are supporting BIL-funded efforts by investing in projects that will facilitate development and validation of cost-effective next generation technologies, expand basin-scale storage resource assessment and management, provide technical assistance to stakeholders and impacted communities, and establish a CO2 transport research program that considers multiple modes of transport, such as pipeline, ship, rail, and truck.

The CTS Program will accelerate CCS/CDR and transport deployment through strategically interfacing five key initiatives: Carbon Storage Assurance Facility Enterprise (CarbonSAFE), Carbon Basin Assessment and Storage Evaluation (CarbonBASE), Carbon Storage Technology Operations and Research (CarbonSTORE), regional technical assistance, and a CO2 transport research consortium.

The CTS Program recognizes that accelerating CCS/CDR and CO2 transport infrastructure development will require technical assistance to stakeholders and communities. To achieve this, the CTS Program's technical assistance projects are building on past successes and the ongoing Regional Initiative projects by providing stakeholders with access to expertise in areas such as characterization methods, consultation on permitting and monitoring strategies, business model development, and community engagement. The most recent regional technical assistance projects selected in 2023 are focused on assistance for developers of large- and hub-scaled projects with a strong emphasis on community engagement and participation. In 2024, the CTS Program is expected to select new Regional Initiative Technical Assistance Partnership (RITAP) projects that is expected to address the unique challenges and opportunities of multiple CCS/CDR and CO2 transport projects developed within a single geologic basin. Technical assistance may include properly siting storage projects to avoid pressure interference between neighboring storage facilities, pore space and mineral rights issues, transportation rights-of way, navigating diverse regulatory jurisdictions, storage resource management, and other aspects.