5.3.6 Storage Capacity Estimation

The simplest method for estimating storage capacity is the volumetric method. In this method, the capacity is estimated as a fraction of the calculated pore space volume in the target storage formation and structure, as constrained by an assumed realistic range of filling with supercritical CO2 at the estimated reservoir average temperature and pressure. At the other end of the complexity scale, one could estimate capacity using reservoir flow simulators and geomechanical analysis tools. As explained by Aarnes et al., 2010, this approach requires that the underground is explicitly represented in a three-dimensional digital geo-cellular model including the most relevant structural and petrophysical features, and the dynamic processes, e.g. injection, fluid movement and spatial and temporal pressure responses. The capacity could then be estimated to reflect the maximum volume of CO2 that can be injected without causing too large a pressure increase, CO2-spill at structural spill points, or migration through other potential leakage pathways. Inferences about the potential for leakage can, in some cases, be made from regional knowledge, interpretation of seismic surveys or geomechanical modelling.