A trio of Senate Republicans introduced legislation Wednesday that would change one of carbon capture’s biggest drivers in the United States.
Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) unveiled a bill that would increase the amount of money companies can receive for storing carbon dioxide via enhanced oil recovery (EOR) — a process where CO2 is used to stimulate wells.
President Joe Biden’s signature climate law boosted the amount of money that companies can get under the federal 45Q tax credit, a major incentive for the carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry. The credit provides a monetary value per metric ton of CO2 that is stored — either via dedicated geologic storage, in products or through EOR.
The new bill — known as the “Enhanced Energy Recovery Act” — would create “parity” under 45Q by “giving across-the-board, equal treatment for carbon captured for increased energy production, utilization, and sequestration,” according to a news release from Barrasso, ranking member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
