CCUS, Wyoming, & Non-OECD Economies: ISO Standards as the Common Denominator

Much of today’s CCUS and climate change mitigation discussion revolves around CCUS and the need for the full-scale deployment of CCUS. At the same time, the International Standards community, largely led by the International Standards Organization (ISO) in Geneva, Switzerland is developing the world’s first internationally accepted standard for the design, construction, operation, environmental planning and management, risk management, quantification, monitoring and verification, and related activities in the field of carbon dioxide capture, transportation, and geological storage. The ISO Technical Committee 265 is nearing completion on a set of standards that would address much of the value chain of CCUS. Many question the timing, value, and applicability of the standard. That is code for “who cares, and why do this?” To that end, the State of Wyoming intends to embark on a large-scale CCUS project in the hopes of addressing the vast CO2 deficit in the state for CO-EOR production. On a global scale, what can or will motivate or assist other nations, especially non-OECD economies to undertake the costly implementation of CCUS? One nexus to potentially address these issues is the ISO TC-265 work. The ISO standards are being keenly watched and in many cases participation of non-OECD nations in the hope that the end product (e.g. ISO Standard) can help their unique situation as a developing nation. At the same time, the ISO standard may play a role in helping to get the Wyoming project completed, while simultaneously assisting the North American and Global CO2-EOR industry to gain the essential volumes of CO2 to allow for the expected energy demand.