Sturgeon
Sturgeon Refinery, Alberta
Key Carbon holds a share in a royalty applied to CO₂ captured from the Sturgeon Refinery in Alberta — the first refinery built in Canada in over 35 years and the world’s first designed with integrated carbon capture from the outset. Since operations began in 2017, the refinery has processed approximately 79,000 barrels of diluted bitumen per day, producing ultra-low sulphur diesel, vacuum gas oil, diluent, and natural gas liquids.
Through advanced gasification technology, the Sturgeon Refinery converts heavy bottoms — a major waste byproduct of bitumen — into hydrogen for refinery use and a pure, dry CO₂ stream, reducing up to 70% of the facility’s CO₂ footprint. This captured CO₂ is sold to third parties for enhanced oil recovery and permanent storage. Importantly, the refinery serves as an anchor supply to the Alberta Carbon Trunk Line (ACTL) — the world’s largest carbon capture, transportation, utilization, and storage system dedicated to industrial CO₂.
Key Carbon owns a 2.68% share of the royalty from the CO₂ captured at the Sturgeon Refinery, providing a long-term cash flow stream supported by high-quality compliance credits through to 2100. Our involvement underscores our commitment to innovative finance models that align industrial decarbonization with sustainable investor returns.
