cool energy update

EVE has 15% of this company from memory:

ABN: 49 097 929 461
16 Altona Street, Level 2
West Perth, Western Australia 6005
PO Box 171,
West Perth, Western Australia 6872
ph: +61 8 9482 7900
fx: +61 8 9482 7999
e: [email protected]
www.coolenergy.com.au
MEDIA RELEASE
7th November 2006
CO2 REMOVAL TECHNOLOGY - INITIAL FIELD TRIALS VERY PROMISING
Preliminary field trials at Cool Energy’s gas processing plant near Dongara north of Perth
have been very positive and testing is gaining momentum.
The demonstration plant, based at ARC Energy’s Xyris site in the Perth Basin, is the first of
its kind in the world and brings Cool Energy’s ground-breaking CryoCell® technology out of
the laboratory and into the field. The technology, developed in Western Australia, removes
carbon dioxide from natural gas in liquid form making it immediately available for geosequestration.
Cool Energy is now aiming to complete testing of their demonstration gas dehydration and
CO2 removal plants next year.
According to Managing Director Ms Jessie Inman, preparation for trials with higher CO2
levels are progressing well, with some minor mechanical problems encountered with the
demonstration plant being addressed by the manufacturer.
”Despite the mechanical delays and many challenges we’ve faced, we have learned a
tremendous amount and made some great progress to date,” Ms Inman said.
“Trials thus far have confirmed Cool Energy’s expectations regarding many aspects of the
process performance.
“Work to date has also confirmed that the plant is not expected to have difficulty operating in
a commercial setting. In routine operations, after shut down, the whole system can be
restarted and meet target temperatures in just two to three hours.
“The restart time is significant because in a commercial environment, shut downs are
expensive and need to be kept to the shortest period of time possible to reduce production
loss,” Ms Inman said.
Cool Energy is also continuing their laboratory testing program in Perth to support field trials
and further develop their technology for new applications, and recently invested in a full time
researcher at Curtin University of Technology. The researcher is expected to commence
work on behalf of Cool Energy in November.
Cool Energy’s team of experts is now working to prepare the CryoCell® plant for higher CO2
testing.
The modified plant is due for completion soon and is expected to be able to test CO2 levels
of 30 – 40% and possibly higher.
“We are very excited about our progress because the world needs this technology, in
particular Australia and other countries with high CO2 natural gas fields,” Ms Inman said.
“Natural gas is one of the cleanest and most abundant energy sources available to meet
existing and future energy demand.
Cool Energy is well positioned with its technological advances in gas processing to fully
participate in the increasing market for clean energy and the need to reduce greenhouse
gases.
“We’re continuing a number of discussions with potential commercial partners with high CO2
levels in their natural gas fields and hope to have the first commercial project identified and
confirmed within the next few months,” Ms Inman said.
On behalf of all partners in the project, Cool Energy wishes to thank its dedicated technical
team including Chief Technology Officer, Mr Allan Hart, Project Manager, Mr Simon Elliott
and Process Development Engineer, Mr Nimalan Gnanendran.
Cool Energy also acknowledges the contribution of ARC Energy and their continued support
and cooperation being provided at their Xyris Site in the Perth Basin.
About Cool Energy & CryoCell®
Cool Energy's CryoCell® technology aims to unlock previously uneconomic gas reserves due
to a high CO2 content and help to fulfill the rising demand for energy. The low-cost CryoCell®
technology extracts the CO2 by freezing it, then later removing it as a liquid for sequestration,
or for use in enhanced oil recovery.
The technology eliminates the need for traditional and more expensive solvent and
membrane-based processes, and their supporting utilities, thus making it cheaper to build
and operate.
The technology has the potential to unlock hundreds of gas fields around the world, currently
not developed because of their high CO2 levels.
Cool Energy’s development partners include Shell Global Solutions International, Woodside
Energy Limited, ARC Energy Limited, Nido Petroleum Limited, Curtin University, and the
Centre for Energy and Greenhouse Technologies
Cool Energy is currently carrying out field trials of their gas processing plant at ARC Energy's
producing Xryis field near Dongara, about 360 km north of Perth. The plant incorporates two
leading-edge gas treatment technologies – Cool Energy's own CO2 removal CryoCell®
technology fed by Woodside's new gas dehydration process, which extracts water from
natural gas streams and provides the crucial dry feed to the CryoCell® operation. Cool
Energy is managing the development of Woodside's dehydration process. Both technologies
were developed at WA’s Curtin University of Technology.
For further information, please contact:
Jessie Inman
9482-7900