First cross border CO2 transportation deal signed to decarbonise Europe

Northern Lights, a joint venture owned by Equinor, Shell and TotalEnergies, has signed the world’s first commercial agreement on cross border CO2 transportation and storage with Yara.

Yara and Northern Lights said in a statement they had agreed on the main commercial terms to transport CO2 captured from Yara Sluiskil, an ammonia and fertiliser plant in the Netherlands, and permanently store it under the seabed off the coast of Norway.

The companies called it an important step for the development of large-scale decarbonisation of heavy industries to help meet climate ambitions.

“This is a major milestone for the development of carbon capture, transport and storage. With the first commercial agreement for transportation and storage of CO2, we open a value chain that is critical for the world to reach net zero by 2050,” Anders Opedal, CEO and president of Equinor, said in a statement.

“Together with our partners, we are building infrastructure to decarbonise industry and energy, securing industrial activity and jobs in a low carbon future," he added.

More than 800,000 tonnes of CO2 will be captured, compressed and liquefied in the Netherlands as part of the project from early 2025, and then transported by ship to the terminal for storages at 2,600 metres under the seabed on the Norwegian continental shelf.

There is significant storage capacity on the Norwegian continental shelf, where Equinor and partners have decades of experience from CO2 capture and storage at the Sleipner and Snøhvit fields, the companies said.

Large-scale CO2 capture from industries and storage of CO2 safely under the seabed, will enable the decarbonisation of hard to abate existing industries, that emits CO2 as part of their processes.

“With this commercial agreement, we are passing a major milestone in the development of a value chain for carbon capture, transport and storage,” Irene Rummelhoff, executive vice president for Marketing, midstream and processing in Equinor, said.

“We experience an increased demand for this service, particularly from large industrial clusters on the European continent. Capture, transport and storage of CO2 is also a prerequisite to produce blue hydrogen and ammonia. These products can eliminate emissions in several energy sectors and act as low carbon feedstock in many industries,” she added in a statement.

With the volumes from Yara Phase 1 reaching full capacity, Northern Light JV is now working to mature phase 2 for final investment decision increasing the total capacity to 5-6 million tonnes CO2 per year, the companies said.