Denmark has begun storage of CO2 within the subsoil of the North Sea, in line with INEOS, the lead associate in Undertaking Greensand, described because the world’s first cross-border carbon seize and storage scheme (CCS).
In line with a ten September announcement, the 23 companions behind the venture have now submitted the ultimate report from the pilot venture, which has aimed to develop, take a look at and display secure and environment friendly storage of CO2 within the North Sea subsurface.
The group mentioned the thorough technical verification confirms that the saved CO2 stays safely and completely within the closed Nini West reservoir 1,800 metres under the North Sea seabed, as anticipated. This a part of the work was carried out by impartial supplier of threat, verification and standardization companies, DNV.
“We now have documentation that we now have a well-functioning storage for CO2 within the North Sea subsoil, the place massive quantities of CO2 that might in any other case have been emitted into the environment might be safely and completely saved. We are able to see that the saved CO2 behaves as anticipated within the reservoir 1,800 metres under the seabed. That confidence provides us a strong basis to take the following steps that will likely be essential for CCS in Denmark”, mentioned Mads Gade, Nation Supervisor at INEOS Denmark and Business Director at INEOS Power, the main associate behind Undertaking Greensand.
“Excellent work” from all 23 companions
Undertaking Greensand demonstrated that captured CO2 might be transported throughout borders and saved offshore to mitigate local weather change. This was marked by the events behind the consortium on the occasion First Carbon Storage on 8 March 2023 in Esbjerg, the place Denmark’s King Frederik gave the sign to start the CO2-storage operation,
It was additionally marked with a video speech by President of the European Fee Ursula von der Leyen and speech by Minister for Local weather, Power and Utilities, Lars Aagaard.
“We’re very proud that we’re the primary on the earth to reach growing, testing and demonstrating a well-functioning worth chain for secure and environment friendly seize, transport and storage of CO2 throughout nationwide borders with the goal of mitigating local weather change. This is a vital step on the best way to assembly Denmark’s and the EU’s local weather ambitions, and every of the 23 companions has carried out an impressive job. I’m impressed by how the duty has been solved throughout {many professional} teams, which has made this part of Undertaking Greensand come collectively”, says Mads Gade.
The intensive work within the EUDP-supported venture has additionally meant that a big group of Danish and worldwide firms have gained invaluable expertise within the work with seize, transport and storage of CO2, and now have higher situations to play a job in a future CCS market in Europe.
Standing on the shoulders of an earlier venture in Greensand
With a accomplished and verified pilot part, the best way has been paved for the event of CCS in Denmark. The lead associate in Undertaking Greensand, INEOS, has already utilized for approval on behalf of licence companions Wintershall Dea (now Harbour Power) and Nordsøfonden for Denmark’s first large-scale CO2 storage facility, and is now working exhausting to start out CO2 storage within the North Sea by the top of 2025 or the start of 2026. The ambition is that as much as 400,000 tonnes of CO2 will likely be saved per yr, whereas the plan is to retailer as much as 8 million tonnes of CO2 per yr within the space beneath the North Sea’s seabed from 2030.
On the identical time, work can also be underway to research whether or not it’s potential and secure to retailer CO2 underground on land in Denmark, and earlier this yr, the Minister for Local weather, Power and Utilities awarded INEOS, Wintershall Dea (Harbour Power) and Nordsøfonden an exploration licence for an space of the Danish subsurface in Jutland within the Gassum reservoir. The expertise from Greensand will likely be included within the work to display secure storage additionally on land.
“We emphasised that Denmark has moved to the forefront of CCS on the earth once we saved the primary CO2 within the North Sea. Now we’re within the strategy of investigating take the following step, and right here we stand on the shoulders of the invaluable expertise from Undertaking Greensand’s pilot. We’re eager to proceed this momentum with an ambition that Greensand would be the first CO2 storage facility in operation within the EU, and we are actually awaiting the Danish authorities’ approval of a everlasting storage. This is a vital step, as a result of if Denmark takes simply 5% of a future CCS market in Europe, it might imply as much as 9,000 jobs, with an financial potential of DKK 50 billion. On the identical time, we will help the EU’s aims, as a result of we now have all of the stipulations to create a brand new business that’s a part of the answer to the challenges of the local weather”.
