Illinois Basin - Decatur project concludes

On May 19, 2021, ADM and the University of Illinois announced today the successful completion of the Illinois Basin - Decatur Project (IBDP), a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project designed to evaluate and test the technology at commercial scale. This is one of two CCS projects located adjacent to ADM’s corn processing plant in Decatur, Illinois.

The first-of-its-kind project was primarily funded through the Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium (MGSC) by the U.S. Department of Energy – National Energy Technology Laboratory with the goal to confirm the ability of the Mt. Simon Sandstone to accept and store one million metric tons of carbon dioxide over a period of three years, the equivalent of annual emissions from about 1.2 million passenger cars according to EPA calculations. Working together through the MGSC, the Illinois State Geological Survey designed, implemented, and monitored the project and ADM was the host and operator.

"Today’s announcement marks an important milestone, not only for the Illinois Basin - Decatur Project but also for the advancement of CCS to combat the climate crisis,” said Dr. Jennifer Wilcox, Acting Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy and Carbon Management at the U.S. Department of Energy. “We congratulate ADM and the University of Illinois, and we’re proud to be a part of this achievement.”

The project used 20,000 feet of wells to successfully inject carbon dioxide from ADM’s processing plant more than 6,500 feet underground. More than 2,000 visitors from 30 countries have come to the site throughout the project to learn more about the process and technology.

 Read the full announcement on ADM's website.