Denmark has a safe and well-functioning storage facility for CO2 in the subsurface of the North Sea, where CO2 can be stored permanently to combat climate change.
This is the conclusion of the final report submitted by the 23 partners of the Project Greensand pilot project, which aimed to develop, test and demonstrate the safe and efficient storage of CO2 in the subsurface of the North Sea. The EUDP-supported work in the consortium behind the pilot phase of Project Greensand has thus been completed.
The thorough technical screening ensures that the stored CO2 remains safely and permanently in the closed Nini West reservoir, 1,800 meters below the seabed of the North Sea. This is evident after the results of Project Greensand have been reviewed by DNV, the independent and world-leading provider of risk, verification and standardization services.
"We now have documentation that we have a well-functioning storage facility for CO2 in the subsurface of the North Sea, where large amounts of CO2 that would otherwise have been emitted into the atmosphere can be safely and permanently stored. We find that the stored CO2 in the reservoir at 1800 meters below the seabed behaves as expected. That confidence gives us a solid foundation to take the next steps that will be crucial for CCS in Denmark," said Mads Gade, Country Manager at INEOS Denmark and Commercial Director at INEOS Energy, the lead partner behind Project Greensand.
Excellent work from all 23 partners
Project Greensand was the first in the world to demonstrate that captured CO2 can be transported across borders and stored offshore to mitigate climate change. This was underlined by the parties behind the consortium at the First Carbon Storage event on 8 March 2023 in Esbjerg, where His Majesty King Frederik gave the go-ahead for the storage of CO2 in the subsurface of the North Sea. The initiative was also welcomed in a video address by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and a speech by Minister of Climate, Energy and Utilities, Lars Aagaard.
"We are very proud to have been the first in the world to succeed in developing, testing and demonstrating a well-functioning value chain for safe and efficient capture, transport and storage of CO2 across national borders, with the aim of mitigating climate change. This is an important step towards Denmark's and the EU's climate ambitions, and each of the 23 partners has done an excellent job. I am impressed by the contribution made by a variety of disciplines, which has successfully completed this phase of Project Greensand," says Mads Gade.
The intensive work in the EUDP-supported project has also meant that a large group of Danish and international companies have gained valuable experience in working with CO2 capture, transport and storage, and now have better insights to play a role in a future CCS market in Europe.
CCS in Denmark relies on the experience of Project Greensand
A completed and verified pilot phase has paved the way for the development of CCS in Denmark. The lead partner in Project Greensand, INEOS, has already applied for approval for the first large-scale CO2 storage facility in Denmark on behalf of licence partners Wintershall Dea (now Harbour Energy) and Nordsøfonden, and is now working hard to start CO2 storage in the North Sea by the end of 2025 or early 2026. The ambition is to store up to 400,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, while the plan is to store up to 8 million tonnes of CO2 per year in the area under the seabed of the North Sea from 2030.
At the same time, the possibility and safety of storing CO2 underground on land in Denmark is also being investigated, and earlier this year the Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities granted INEOS, Wintershall Dea (Harbour Energy) and Nordsøfonden an exploration licence for part of the Danish subsurface in Jutland in the Gassum reservoir. Greensand's experience will be used to demonstrate safe storage on land as well.
"We have shown that Denmark has taken the lead in CCS in the world when we salvaged the first CO2 in the North Sea. Now we are exploring how to take the next step, drawing on the invaluable experience of the Project Greensand pilot. We are keen to continue this momentum with the ambition for Greensand to become the first operational CO2 storage facility in the EU, and we are now awaiting the approval of the Danish authorities for permanent storage. This is an important step, because if Denmark gets just 5% of a future CCS market in Europe, it could create up to 9,000 jobs, with an economic potential of DKK 50 billion. At the same time, we can support the EU's goals, as we are fulfilling all the conditions to create a new industry that is part of the solution to the climate challenges," says Mads Gade.
Want to know more about Project Greensand? Read the news item of the launch or watch the Z-Extra report by Kanaal Z