ExxonMobil, FuelCell Energy to build CCS pilot plant

Houston-based ExxonMobil Corp. has announced plans to build a pilot plant to test a carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology developed by Danbury, Connecticut-based FuelCell Energy Inc. that the companies say could significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions from key industries.  

FuelCell’s technology can decrease CO2 output while also producing heat and electricity, the companies say. The plant will mark the first time carbonate fuel cell (CFC) technology will be piloted for carbon capture in an industrial environment. 

ExxonMobil affiliate Esso Nederland BV, Breda, Netherlands, plans to build the pilot plant, which aims to obtain data on performance and operability of CFC technology, at its Rotterdam Manufacturing Complex, an integrated refining and petrochemical site. Developed jointly with FuelCell Energy, the pilot additionally aims to better understand the costs of installing and operating a CFC plant for carbon capture and to address potential technical issues that may occur in a commercial environment. 

FuelCell’s technology uses fuel cells to produce electricity from methane. CFCs can capture carbon dioxide emissions from industrial sources before they are released into the atmosphere, the company says.  

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Once the CFC technology is ready for broadscale implementation, the companies say, it potentially could offer economical decarbonization solutions for customers in a wide range of industries. FuelCell Energy says it believes this technology can be used for individual projects that can each capture 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide a year. Pending a successful demonstration, ExxonMobil says it could deploy this technology at its manufacturing sites around the world, as well as at other industrial sites, to reduce emissions.  

“The unique advantage of this technology is that it not only captures CO2 but also produces low carbon power, heat and hydrogen as co-products,” says Geoff Richardson, senior vice president of commercial and business development for ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions. “We are excited for the opportunity to pilot this innovation at our own Rotterdam facility.”  

“FuelCell Energy and ExxonMobil believe that capturing carbon at the source is an efficient way to decarbonize heavy industry,” says FuelCell Energy President and CEO Jason Few. “This technology can capture carbon and produce electricity simultaneously, making it a game-changer in the industry.”  

CCP was singled out at this year’s COP28 Climate Summit as an essential part of a historic agreement to shift away from fossil fuels, even as cost and scale continue to be seen as blockers to adoption.  

The pilot plant will receive funding from the Innovation Fund of the European Climate Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency.  

FuelCell Energy Inc. works to enable a world powered by clean energy through the decarbonization of power and production of hydrogen. ExxonMobil, one of the largest publicly traded international energy and petrochemical companies, owns and operates the largest CO2 pipeline network in the United States.