Note: Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) Greenhouse gases (GHG) Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR)
The expertise currently held within the oil & gas industry is the same required for the geothermal industry. These synergies aid in the continuation of high levels of employment and tax revenues, as the energy companies transition from oil and gas to hydrogen producers with CCS and further, to the enhancement of geothermal energy sector.
By enabling the conversion of hydrocarbon fields from oil and gas production to hydrogen generation, access to a reliable and secure energy resource is maintained (and potentially expanded) to industry. This enables the national tax economy to better support the transition to newer, more costly, greener technologies during their commercial growth path to future economic magnitudes of scale.
These decarbonised oil and gas energy supplies of hydrogen to industry require improved re-investment metrics to ensure a continued national economic development that is also environmentally responsible. This commerciality can be achieved through the additional finances generated by climate beneficial revenue streams.
- Carbon taxes (e.g., ‘polluter pays’ – motivating industry to reduce their tax liabilities)
- Carbon credits for all carbon captured, for the CCS of GHG (i.e., both CH4 & CO2)
- Increased recoverable oil and gas reserves via the injection of CO2 into oil & gas reservoirs for EOR, to counteract declining oil & gas production, giving more methane (CH4) for exploitation to generate yet more hydrogen
- Hydrogen sales (e.g., fossil-free power & transportation)
- Water production as a free biproduct from hydrogen combustion for electric power. This will create a reduction in the demand for surface water reservoirs or dams on farmland and expensive desalination plants on the coast, while generating sales revenues (for domestic or farm irrigation supplies and district heating) and reduces the risk of geopolitical water wars.
- The decentralising power production through thermally enhanced geothermal energy, combined with the wellbore conversion of methane (i.e., biogas) from agriculture, landfill and biowaste to generate hydrogen.
