Low-carbon GeoEnergy resource options in the Midland Valley of Scotland, UK

Abstract

Scotland is committed to be a carbon-neutral society by 2040 and has achieved the important initial step of decarbonising power production. However, more ambitious measures are required to fully decarbonise all of the electricity, transport and heating sectors. We explore the potential to use the low-carbon GeoEnergy resources and bio-energy combined with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) in the Midland Valley area to decarbonise the Scottish economy and society. The Midland Valley has a long history of geological resource extraction, and as a result, the geology of the region is wellcharacterised. Geothermal energy and subsurface energy storage have the potential to be implemented. Some of them, such as gravity and heat storage, could re-use the redundant mining infrastructure to decrease investment costs. Hydrogen storage could be of particular interest as the Midland Valley offers the required caprock-reservoir assemblages. BECCS is also a promising option to reduce overall CO 2 emissions between 1.10-4.40 MtCO 2 /yr. The Midland Valley has enough space to grow the necessary crops, but CO 2 storage will most likely be implemented in North Sea saline aquifers. The studied aspects suggest that the Midland Valley represents a viable option in Scotland for the exploitation of the majority of low-carbon GeoEnergy resources.

Geosciences and the Energy Transition

“…Of the many thermal energy storage technologies available, those of most interest to the geoscience world include large pit storage and underground thermal energy storage (UTES) (Heinemann et al, 2019). Large pit storage encompasses shallow lined pits filled with water and gravel as the storage medium.…”