Norway presses ahead with full-scale CCS project

The Norwegian government has announced it is pressing ahead with plans to build a “full-scale” carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration project.

Gassnova, the state enterprise tasked with developing CCS, will soon begin a new set of studies looking into the concept for the 360 million kroner (£35.4 million) facility.

The aim is to complete the studies in autumn next year, so a Front End Engineering and Design phase can be awarded funding in the 2018 budget and a final investment decision can be made in the summer of 2019.

Feasibility studies examining the potential for full-chain CCS in Norway were published by the government in July. They included assessments of three potential projects for the carbon capture stage: the first at Norcam’s cement factory in Brevik; the second at Yara Norge’s ammonia plant in Heroya; and the third at the Klemetsrud waste recovery plant run the Waste-to-Energy Agency in Oslo.

The government is offering funding to up to three such projects to carry out concept studies as the next step towards taking part. It said the projects assessed in the feasibility studies will all be eligible for the funding, although other projects which fulfil the same criteria and are at the same level of maturity will also be able to apply.

Norwegian energy minister Tord Lien said: “It is important that we work systematically, using best practice from industry. The feasibility studies have demonstrated that it is possible to implement all three projects.

“My concern is developing a good basis to make a decision. We now have the opportunity to mature all three capture projects to concept selection.”

The announcement was warmly welcomed by chief executive of the Carbon Capture and Storage Association Luke Warren: “This is a hugely encouraging announcement by the Norwegian government and could once again place Europe amongst the leading regions developing CCS around the world.

“The fact that Norway has chosen to develop CCS on three very different industrial sites demonstrates the massive importance of CCS to sectors such as steel, cement, chemicals and refining.”

He continued: “For too long people have only considered CCS in the context of the power sector. Other countries need to follow Norway’s example and broaden their approach to CCS by encompassing industry, heat and power.

“In the UK we are now looking to the government to follow Norway’s lead and develop a new approach to CCS that recognises its tremendous value right across the UK economy.”