Unmineable Coal Seams

Unmineable coal seams are too deep or too thin to be economically mined. All coals have varying amounts of methane adsorbed onto pore surfaces, and wells can be drilled into unmineable coalbeds to recover this coalbed methane (CBM). Initial CBM recovery methods, such as dewatering and depressurization, leave a considerable amount of methane in the formation. Additional recovery can be achieved by sweeping the coalbed with CO₂. Depending on coal rank three to thirteen molecules of CO₂ are adsorbed for each molecule of methane released, thereby providing an excellent storage site for CO₂ along with the additional benefit of enhanced coalbed methane (ECBM) recovery. Similar to maturing oil reservoirs, unmineable coalbeds are good candidates for CO₂ storage.

While not all potential areas of unmineable coal have been examined, the RCSPs have documented the location of 171-197 billion metric tons of CO₂ sequestration potential in unmineable coal seams.

Note: PCOR includes Canadian Provinces.

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