A techno-economical study of the CO2 capture in the energy sector in Portugal

AbstractPortugal is one of the countries facing the problem of carbon costs due to the insufficient preparation to achieve its commitments for the Kyoto Protocol and the EU Burden–Sharing Agreement. With the use (and dependency) on fossil fuels in our present quality of life, and the need of the continuous technological development, the CO2 levels will still continue to grow. It is, therefore, urgent to take some measures in order to stagnate and even more, to diminish the emissions of this phenomenon to the atmosphere. This study shows the implementation of CO2 capture as a possibility for CO2 reductions in the electricity sector in Portugal. The IECM (Integrated Environmental Control Model) is used to analyze Portuguese fossil fuel power plants and provide systematic techno-economical analysis indicating the cost of emission control equipment, reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and other key parameters which may change when a CO2 capture and storage (CCS) unit is implemented into fossil fuel power plant