ESTEVAN — It's been more than two years since SaskPower has had a tenant for its carbon capture test facility (CCTF) at the Shand Power Station.
The structure opened to much fanfare in June 2015 and has had multiple occupants since then, but it has been empty since the fall of 2021. The most recent tenant was SaskPower, who used the building for its own research into carbon capture and storage technology.
"We were looking at ... on the amine process, and we made some progress on that," said Joel Cherry, a media relations and issues management consultant with SaskPower.
The Crown corporation previously shared the CCTF with Shell Cansolv to work together on amine degradation issues. The initial tenant for the building was Hitachi, who partnered with SaskPower on the project.
The CCTF gives clients from around the world the opportunity to test their CCS systems in a commercial setting.
Cherry said SaskPower is open to discussing opportunities if any companies are interested in using the test facility, but right now there are none. The Carbon Capture Knowledge Centre in Regina has also had discussions with entities about using the CCTF.
He also said SaskPower wouldn't rule out moving back into the facility for further work, but it's not something they're currently exploring.
Cherry pointed out there are very minimal costs associated with keeping the facility operating.
"We drained it and laid it up in such a way that no ongoing maintenance is required. We do keep it heated, but that actually allows us to use the space for heated storage when needed," said Cherry.
There haven't been discussions about decommissioning the CCTF due to the lack of a tenant.
