Joint venture to focus on carbon capture in Union City
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An ethanol producer in Randolph County has formed a joint venture for a carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project. Cardinal Ethanol LLC is partnering with Vault 44.01 Ltd. in Canada to create One Carbon Partnership LP, which will design, implement and operate the initiative at Cardinal’s production facility near Union City.
Vault specializes in CCS with more than 15 similar projects in operation throughout North America.
Cardinal said its facility, which produces about 135 million gallons of ethanol annually, generates some 400,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide as a byproduct of the corn fermentation process.
One Carbon Partnership plans to build a new facility nearby to capture that CO2 and permanently store it underground in a secure geologic reservoir.
Union City is located about 95 miles east of Indianapolis at the Indiana-Ohio border.
“We are committed to enhancing shareholder value through employing the latest technology in the production of clean, low carbon intensity and environmentally friendly bioethanol,” Cardinal CEO Jeff Painter said in a news release. “This partnership aligns with Cardinal Ethanol’s goals and keeps us on a path to zero emission liquid fuels.”
Vault said the project is still in its early stages, but the partners have submitted a permit application to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The joint venture did not specify how much is being invested in the project. Additionally, while an estimated number of new jobs resulting from the effort is not known, Cardinal said it will “continue to provide high quality jobs and economic opportunity.”
Inside INdiana Business did not immediately receive a response to a request for more information.
Efforts to increase carbon capture and sequestration have ramped up in Indiana over the last year. In September, Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a bill creating a regulatory framework for companies to store captured carbon dioxide underground in Indiana.
While the bill was primarily created to encourage more hydrogen production in Indiana, particularly in the northwestern part of the state, Indianapolis-based Energy Systems Network CEO Paul Mitchell told Inside INdiana Business there are other areas that have the same type of underground geological formations that are conducive to CCS.
“This bipartisan legislation is keeping Indiana ahead of the pack by setting up a permit program to allow companies to capture their carbon emissions and store them underground,” said State Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, who authored the bill. “This is a safe and effective process used around the world, which will also help stimulate growth in our economy by encouraging investments and cutting down on costly regulation.”