It was recently announced that Mizuho Bank will be investing in Bison Low Carbon Ventures, who intend to use the funding to develop their CCS projects. The purpose of these projects that are under development, is to capture and store carbon dioxide emitted from Albert’s industrial heartlands.

Bison has recently created two evaluation phase Hub tenures, which are currently in the process of receiving regulatory approval, along with commercial deployment. One of these projects, the Meadowbrook CCS Hub Project (MCSH), is based in Alberta, specifically near Edmonton. This project is being developed with the aim of creating a world-scale storage operation, that is capable of holding three million tons of carbon dioxide per year. So far, a detailed geological evaluation has been completed and a sequestration application has also been submitted, with the aim for this plant to be able to begin storage operations by mid-2025. Beginning operations is dependant on receiving the required approvals, however, if the project is approved, then the company plans for this plant to begin operations and then scale up to full capacity at the same rate that the market demand for sequestration services develops.

The wider purpose of the MCSH project is to transport and store carbon emissions from the Alberta Industrial Heartland region and its industries, plus the industries within its proximity. Through providing this service, Bison aims for this plant to contribute towards Canada’s and Alberta’s 2050 goal of achieving carbon neutrality. The plant will also support new emission sensitive and hard to abate industries, which are focusing on finding a way to decarbonise.

Due to the excellent and efficient projects that Bison has developed, Mizuho, Japan’s third largest bank, has decided to invest in Bison’s MCSH project. Currently, Mizuho is focused on investing in the implementation and deployment of CCS technology and they will be doing this predominantly through their newly established Transition Investment Facility. Mizuho has dedicated this facility to committing equity investments into seed or early-stage corporations.

Mizuho has stated that, ‘it aims to co-create value and contribute to the sustainability of the environment, in part through the development of Bison's CCS projects in Alberta. Through its relationship with Bison, Mizuho will also participate in the North Drumheller CCS Project and other Bison-developed energy transition initiatives.’