Colorado Corn Cultivating Opportunities

OMAHA (DTN) -- Archer Daniels Midland Company, the Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium and the Illinois State Geological Survey announced Friday that they are working on a carbon sequestration project, according to a news release from ADM.

The project will involve the capture and storage of carbon dioxide from ADM's ethanol plant in Decatur, Ill. In this project, carbon dioxide will be stored in the tiny spaces of porous rock deep below the earth's surface, the release said.

This technology is one method of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by permanently storing carbon dioxide in the ground rather than releasing it into the atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide is a byproduct of ethanol production. Some ethanol plants capture CO2 as a co-product and sell it to companies that use it to produce carbonated beverages.

The ADM project is designed to confirm the ability of the Mount Simon Sandstone, a major regional saline-water-bearing rock formation in Illinois, to accept and store 1 million tons of carbon dioxide during a three-year period.

The carbon dioxide will be provided by ADM from its Decatur ethanol plant, according to the release, and the project will be located on ADM's Decatur property.

The $84.3 million project primarily will be funded by $66.7 million from the U.S. Department of Energy during a seven-year period.

The project will begin in spring 2008 with the drilling of the injection well. Environmental monitoring will begin in October 2008 to collect a year of background information. The sequestration and injection of carbon dioxide is scheduled to begin in October 2009 and should conclude in 2012, according to the release.

The Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium is one of seven regional partnerships selected by the DOE to determine the best approaches for capturing and storing carbon dioxide that might otherwise contribute to global climate change.

The MGSC is led by the Illinois State Geological Survey, in conjunction with the Indiana Geological Survey and the Kentucky Geological Survey. MGSC's work covers parts of Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky.

ADM (http://www.admworld.com/) is one of the largest ethanol companies in the world, as its plants produce about 1.1 billion gallons of ethanol each year.

(AM/SS)