Norway’s Höegh LNG and Kjell Inge Rokke’s oil and gas producer Aker BP have entered into a strategic partnership to develop shipping and storage solutions within the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), for carbon dioxide (CO2) captured from industrial emitters in North-West Europe.
Aker BP has been evaluating CO2 storage opportunities on the NCS as a potential new business opportunity and a potential decarbonisation lever in the longer term. Earlier this year, the company, together with its 40% partner OMV, secured a licence for CO2 storage in the Norwegian North Sea that comes with a work program that includes a 3D seismic survey and a drill or drop decision by 2025.
The collaboration with Höegh aims to set up a “strong value chain” for carbon capture and storage, including gathering, transporting and securely injecting CO2 for permanent storage in subsea reservoirs.
The deal encompasses Höegh LNG spearheading the further development of its concept of floating CO2 storage units (FCSO) enabling purification and aggregating CO2 from multiple emitters in key export hubs. The liquified CO2 is expected to be transported by CO2 shuttle tankers at low pressure, which results in a larger transportation capacity and a lower CO2 unit cost due to scale.
“Höegh LNG welcomes the opportunity to join forces with Aker BP and deliver a large scale, one-stop shop CCS value chain to industrial emitters before 2030. Together we will provide market-leading solutions for decarbonising at a low unit cost, contributing to the energy transition in Europe,” said Erik Nyheim, CEO of Höegh LNG.
For its part, Aker BP will lead the development of offshore injection facilities and identify suitable subsea reservoirs for CO2 storage.
“We expect CCS to play a key role in the transition to a low-carbon energy future. This partnership reflects our ambition to advancing CCS solutions by combining Aker BP’s strengths in subsurface understanding and large-scale project development with Höegh LNG’s technical expertise in the LNG sector,” added Karl Johnny Hersvik, CEO of Aker BP.
