A Pre-Feasibility Assessment of Geologic CO₂ Storage, Offshore Corpus Christi

Abstract

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a technology to capture CO2 emissions from industrial point-source facilities and store the CO2 in deep geological formations in perpetuity. The Gulf of Mexico is a region of interest for CCS development, as it contains laterally extensive reservoir-seal systems comprising Miocene sands with high porosity and permeability that are overlain by low permeability shale. Because the Gulf of Mexico has been greatly characterized for oil and gas exploration, it is a promising region for carbon storage development. Metro areas Corpus Christi and Victoria are known for their refineries, petrochemical, and LNG (liquified natural gas) production, which create emissions along the Texas coast. To identify offshore CO2 storage within proximity to coastal CO2 sources, this study assesses the CO2 storage potential within a set of adjacent leasing blocks in federal waters offshore Corpus Christi. Site characterization is based on a 3D seismic-reflection survey and legacy well-logs to identify regional faults, and an offshore, laterally extensive reservoir and caprock that could be useful for geologic carbon storage. This study develops a geomodel from seismic-reflection data and reservoir properties and then implements numerical simulation to consider four injection scenarios using a single injection. Simulation results storing CO2 at a rate of 1 MMT/year and 1.7 MMT/year show two potential injection rates that could be safe for storage over a 30-year period. We hope this pre-feasibility study encourages further studies in the offshore Corpus Christi region.