NETL recently updated its widely used study on the performance and cost of fossil-fueled commercial power generation systems. The report titled “Cost and Performance Baseline for Fossil Energy Plants, Volume 1: Bituminous Coal and Natural Gas to Electricity” is used by industry, researchers and policy makers as a key reference for contemporary carbon dioxide (CO₂) capture systems applied to pulverized coal (PC) and natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) electricity generating units.

“Compared to Revision 4 of the report published in 2019, the revised study – Revision 4a - includes new cases for H-class NGCCs and incorporates updated quotes for the Shell CANSOLV post-combustion capture system,” said NETL’s Tommy Schmitt, who authored the report. “The revision also extends carbon capture rates for PC and NGCC cases to greater than 90%, which will support the Administration’s goal for a decarbonized power sector by 2035.” 

Both 90% and 95% capture cases are presented for PC and NGCC plants as representations of the state-of-the-art. Technology suppliers and subject matter experts acknowledge and support that solvent-based post-combustion CO₂ capture technologies are capable of achieving CO₂ removal rates beyond 95% on low-purity streams representative of fossil-fueled combustion. However, the relatively limited experience with the design and operation of capture systems that can routinely, reliably and economically achieve very high removal rates means that such applications require further study; consequently, 97% (NGCC) and 99% (PC) cases are included in appendices.

“The data in the report suggest a trend of lower costs from the previous revision’s conclusions,” Schmitt said. “We also see a relatively small impact on cost of capture in going from 90% to 95% capture.”

Schmitt explained that for the F-class cases with 90% capture, the updated post-combustion capture system results in an 8.7% reduction in the levelized coat of electricity (LCOE) relative to Revision 4. The LCOE 

increases by 1.8% from 90% to 95% capture. Furthermore, as a result of the updated performance and cost for the capture system, the cost of CO₂ capture for the 90% CCS F-class decreased from $80 to $61 per tonne, with little change as the capture rate is increased from 90% to 95%.  

Read the newly revised report here, which contains detailed performance and environmental profiles as well as cost conclusions for 23 power plant configurations. This work will serve as the basis for multiple follow-on analyses, including NETL’s NGCC and PC carbon capture retrofit studies and accompanying Carbon Capture Retrofit Databases, as well as an updated coal-biomass cofiring (up to 100% biomass) with carbon capture study.

NETL is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory that drives innovation and delivers technological solutions for an environmentally sustainable and prosperous energy future. By leveraging its world-class talent and research facilities, NETL is ensuring affordable, abundant and reliable energy that drives a robust economy and national security, while developing technologies to manage carbon across the full life cycle, enabling environmental sustainability for all Americans.