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The Rockhampton–Gladstone region (Figure 2.1) is a major emission node as it contains five major
CO 2 emitters, representing 49 % of Queensland’s total possible sequesterable stationary CO 2
emissions. The area has the potential for a large scale capture project, with storage in either the
southern Bowen Basin and/or Denison Trough (part of the Bowen Basin). Geological assessments
of the major sedimentary basins in Queensland suggested that the Bowen and Galilee basins contain
a number of small to large scale options for the geological storage of CO 2 . The Bowen Basin alone
could provide sufficient storage volume to make significant cuts to Queensland’s CO 2 emissions
profile.
The Bowen Basin contains producing hydrocarbon pools which upon depletion may provide long
term storage and injectivity options, relatively close to southeast Queensland’s major CO 2 emission
hubs. On that basis, it was decided to concentrate on this basin for the first phase of the work.
A summary of the geology and risk factors associated with the potential for CO 2 storage of the
sedimentary basins in Queensland is provided in Chapter 3.
The Bowen Basin is located between 300 and 600 km west to northwest of Brisbane and 100 to 200
km west of the Rockhampton - Gladstone region. The Basin supplies both gaseous hydrocarbons
and coal to the electricity producers and major industries. These are also the major CO 2 emitters in
southeast Queensland. This has resulted in a large infrastructure network of rail lines and pipelines
joining the Bowen Basin to the east coast of Queensland. This infrastructure may provide potential
access corridors for CO 2 pipelines in the future. These pipelines could subsequently be extended
further west to the Galilee Basin if a suitable storage site is identified.
Due to the large volumes of CO 2 expected to be emitted from the southeast Queensland region, a
number of possible CO 2 geological storage options were examined in the Bowen Basin. The basin
was divided into a number of study areas, as discussed in the introduction.
1. Denison Trough;
2. east Bowen Basin Study Area (Burunga Anticline/Dulucca area);
3. southeast Bowen Basin Study Area;
4. northeast Bowen Basin Study Area;
5. Roma Shelf, and
6. Wunger Ridge flank.
The Roma Shelf located near the township of Roma and northeast Bowen Basin are yet to be fully
assessed for geological storage of CO 2 . This is due to an increase in a number of risk factors in the
northeast of the Bowen Basin, including faulting, and interpreted poor reservoir quality. The Roma
Shelf assessment is contingent on the Wunger Ridge results.
The Denison Trough (Figure 2.2a) is favourably located due to its proximity to a major emission
hub in the Rockhampton–Gladstone region. The Denison Trough contains a significant volume of
hydrocarbons that are currently in production. The development of infrastructure for the
compression and transport of hydrocarbon gas from the Denison Trough to the east coast may assist
in provision of access to land for CO 2 transportation facilities (e.g. pipelines).
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