Аgainst the backdrop of the catastrophic impact of the industrial era on climate change and the ecological situation on our planet, the application of new technologies in energy and industry, which should be carbon neutral and economically circular, and, if possible, renewable, are critically important today. In line with the European Commission’s goals of achieving climate neutrality by 2050, large industry and energy producers today understand and take into account the fact that achieving these goals requires the latest efficient technologies and innovative solutions.
From 20 to 24 of February, TalTech – Tallinna Tehnikaülikool (TalTech) hosted a unique training course “Carbon Neutral Geo-Technologies, Level 1”. The innovative course was organized by a new start-up consulting company SHOGenergy, founded by scientists with unique expertise in the field of geo-technologies and geological storage of CO2 in the Baltic region, TalTech researchers – Dr. Alla Shogenova (Research Director) and Dr. Kazbulat Shognenov (CEO). The uniqueness of the course, in addition to its novelty, is also in the fact that it was developed by SHOGenergy scientists and so far has no analogs in world practice. The basic part of the course has already been presented as an additional subject at TalTech Geoloogia Instituut, at the University of Warsaw, in the international course for undergraduates at the Sapienza University in Rome (where the course has already started this year), and the University of Zagreb (Croatia), partly presented at universities- partners of TalTech: Middle East Technical University (METU, Turkey) and Silesian Technical University (Poland), as well as in the courses of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG Latin America).
The course was personally opened by the Mayor of Tallinn, the Green Capital of Europe 2023, Mihhail Kõlvart, with a welcoming speech, emphasizing with his presence the importance of the course topics within the framework of global trends.
12 people took part in the hybrid-organized course, both on-site and online. These are Estonian politicians, representatives of the city government of the capital of Estonia, employees of the Latvian energy company Latvenergo, scientists and representatives of consulting companies from Estonia, Lithuania, Great Britain, Ukraine, and Qatar.
The course was attended by Member of the Estonian Parliament Maria Jufereva-Skuratovski, who is one of the few politicians in Estonia who supports the need to use Estonia’s geological resources to ensure the economic and energy security of the state during the transition to green energy sources, which may take several decades. During this time, in order for the transition to become gradual and non-destructive for the country’s economy and its inhabitants, it is possible to apply various carbon-neutral and even carbon-negative technologies that are already quite developed and demonstrated in world practice.
The core group of the course participants – Latvenergo employees (Head of Development Department, Senior Planning Engineer, Senior Engineer for Thermal Power and Thermal Engineering, Environmental Protection Specialist), discussed with the leaders of the SHOGenergy further plans for cooperation in the region in the field of sharing renewable energy (hydrogen, geothermal energy, etc., as well as the possibility of organizing a hub in Latvia for underground storage of CO2 from the entire Baltic region, since the geological conditions in Latvia are the most suitable for underground storage of gases). We also discussed and outlined possible plans and unique solutions in the field of energy, economy, and even state security and defense in the Baltic Sea region.
The training courses were quite intensive (5 days, 30 academic hours), and the participants in a short time received extensive information from a very wide range of sciences (from geology, petrophysics, geophysics, and geochemistry to economics and legislation). All participants received diplomas of participants and gifts. Those who attended the entire course had the opportunity to test their knowledge on daily exam tests. In order to successfully pass the test and obtain a course graduate certificate (Level-1) and obtain admission to Level-2 courses, it was necessary to correctly answer at least 70% of the questions for each of the tests. All course participants who completed the full course successfully passed the tests and received their quality marks from SHOGenergy.
Congratulations to the participants!
Since the last day of the course merged with the national holiday – Independence Day of the Republic of Estonia, after the award ceremony, the participants celebrated this significant day together with the organizers.
The educational program covered the following topics:
1. Technical comparison of carbon neutral technologies;
2. Introduction to CO2 Capture, Storage and Utilization (CCUS);
3. CO2 capture methods for energy and industry;
4. Possibilities of CO2 transportation and geological storage;
5. Regional CO2 storage capacities, worldwide reports and regional modules;
6. Risks and safety of CO2 storage;
7. Legal aspects (international agreements, standards and conventions, CCS directive);
8. Technologies of negative emissions. Bioenergy (BECCS), direct capture of CO2 from the air (DACCS);
9. Technology of underground CO2 mineralization in basalts;
10. Increase in oil and gas production (EOR and EGR). Reorientation of the oil and gas business towards storage projects;
11. Geothermal energy (+ underground storage of CO2);
12. Technologies of underground storage of hydrogen;
13. Synergy scenarios of CO2, hydrogen and production of geothermal energy;
14. Future prospects for carbon-neutral geo-technologies and their role until 2070.
Introducing SHOGenergy experts:
World-famous specialists in CO2 capture, use and storage technologies with more than 17 years of experience in international projects in this field (CCUS), researchers from the Tallinn University of Technology:
•Dr. Alla Shogenova, TalTech Senior Research Fellow and SHOGenergy Research Director, Doctor of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, Professor of the International Master Course “Geological CO2 Storage” at the Sapienza Universities in Rome and Zagreb 2020-2023.
•Dr. Kazbulat Shogenov, TalTech Research Fellow, CEO and Founder of SHOGenergy, Ph.D. (modelling of geological CO2 storage in the Baltics, geophysics and petrophysics), visiting lecturer at the Middle East Technical University (METU), Silesian University of Technology and American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) courses.
For questions about conducting a course on data and related topics, as well as consulting services and joint participation in projects, please contact us: info@shogenergy.eu, +372 55 89 001
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We offer new innovative solutions for your carbon-neutral energy or industrial production and suggest how to save money and time at the research and monitoring stages!
We thank all the participants and guests (online and on-site) for their interest, and the sponsors (TalTech and the European Regional Development Fund) for their support in organizing the event!
SHOGenergy is racing towards a bright carbon-neutral future at full cruising speed!
