The developers of the major Northern Lights carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in Norway have completed the CO2 receiving and storage facilities.
The facilities consist in a terminal that will receive CO2 cargos, a 100km subsea pipeline for CO2 transportation to the offshore storage location, and subsea injection facilities for safe and permanent CO2 storage in a reservoir 2,600m below the seabed.
Northern Lights is now ready to receive and permanently store CO2 from European industries, with first CO2 injection expected in 2025.
The project is being developed by TotalEnergies, Equinor and Shell.
Norwegian minister of energy Terje Aasland said: “Today’s ceremony marks a significant milestone – one that fills us with great pride and hope for the future. This is a proud moment not just for Northern Lights as a company, but for Norway and for the advancement of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) worldwide.”
Northern Lights is the world’s first commercial CO2 transportation and storage project.
The first phase of the project was supported by the Norwegian government and has a capacity of 1.5m tonnes of CO2 per year, which has been fully booked by customers in Norway and Continental Europe.
The milestone on the Northern Lights project helps cement Norway’s position over the UK as a leader in carbon capture and storage.
Managing director of the Northern Lights JV Tim Heijn added: “Today we achieved an important milestone on our journey to demonstrate CCS as a viable option to help achieve climate goals. The whole world is looking to Norway to learn about CCS.
“Since construction started, we have welcomed more than 10,000 visitors from more than 50 countries. Today we celebrated the completion of the facilities together with the people of our host municipality Oygarden, the Norwegian Ministry of Energy and key stakeholders, including policy makers and industry partners in the CCS chain.
“All are instrumental for the success of Northern Lights and the CCS business in Europe.”
