Two majors team up on low-CO2 tech for gas-fired power generation

U.S.-headquartered energy technology giant Baker Hughes and Australia’s energy major Woodside Energy have signed a technology development agreement (TDA) to jointly work on a lower-carbon power generation solution using a platform designed for oil and gas, heavy industries, and other smaller scale applications.

The latest agreement to develop the small-scale Net Power platform builds on the memorandum of understanding (MoU) the two players inked in 2022, aiming to progress the decarbonization of the natural gas supply chain. The duo says it intends to include other development partners in the program to adapt the concept for the ever-changing power generation arena.

As explained, the Net Power platform uses natural gas to generate affordable power while capturing nearly all carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Through the TDA, the program will also focus on assessing the platform’s feasibility and industrial market scalability. 

“We are excited to continue our collaboration with Baker Hughes and leverage their leading-edge technology and our combined engineering and CCUS capabilities to explore and develop lower-carbon emissions alternative power solutions using Net Power’s platform,” said Woodside Executive Vice President of Technical and Energy Development, Julie Fallon.

Since Baker Hughes is the exclusive provider of the small-scale application of the Net Power platform, the TDA will benefit from the development and testing currently ongoing at Net Power’s demonstration facility in La Porte, Texas, and the company’s planned first utility-scale power plant near Midland, Texas.

“This work has the potential to bring our technology platform to a broader array of end markets and applications, complementing our utility-scale program and strategy,” said Danny Rice, Chief Executive Officer of Net Power. “Today’s announcement is a tangible commitment to continue technology innovation and market development for the Net Power platform and to bring ultra-low emissions energy solutions to a power-hungry world.”

Last month, Woodside Energy and its partners Esso Australia and Mitsui announced an investment of almost $200 million to the Kipper 1B project offshore Australia aiming to bring additional gas supply from the Gippsland Basin online.

Meanwhile, Baker Hughes was picked to supply the liquefaction solution and related services for Argent LNG’s proposed natural gas export facility in Port Fourchon, Louisiana