Norway Pledges $2.7 Billion for 'Longship' Carbon Capture Plan

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Norway has launched the world's most ambitious carbon capture and storage (CCS) plan, called 'Longship' with promised funding of $2.7 billion.

Prime Minister Erna Solberg said: "Longship is a milestone in the government's industry and climate efforts. The project will lead to emission cuts, and facilitate development of new technology and thus new jobs."

The government, working with major oil and gas and heavy industry companies, is backing the implementation of carbon capture at Norcem's cement factory in Brevik as well as providing funding for Fortum Oslo Varme's waste incineration facility in Klemetsrud, Oslo, where there are plans to implement full CCS that will capture around 400,000 tonnes a year of CO2. Longship also comprises funding for the transport and storage project Northern Lights, world's largest proposed undersea CCS project, a joint venture between Equinor (NYSE:EQNR) (Stavanger, Norway), Shell (NYSE:RDS.A) (The Hague, Netherlands) and Total SA (NYSE:TOT) (Paris, France).

Northern Lights will transport liquid CO2 from capture facilities--including Brevik and Oslo--to a terminal at Øygarden in Vestland County. From there, CO2 will be pumped through pipelines to a reservoir beneath the sea floor. Industrial Info is tracking all five projects under the Northern Lights banner. Located on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, Northern Lights is Norway's first full-chain CCS project and will be developed in phases, with Phase 1 providing the capacity to transport, inject and store up to 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year under the sea bed. The project will cost up to 2.6 billion euro ($3 billion) in total, which will cover construction and 10 years of operation. The Norwegian government will cover around 80% of the project's estimated budget.

Norway's Minister of Petroleum and Energy Tina Bru explained: "Building bit by bit in collaboration with the industry has been important to us in order to be confident that the project is feasible. This approach has worked well, and we now have a decision basis. Longship involves building new infrastructure, and we are preparing the ground for connecting other carbon capture facilities to a carbon storage facility in Norway. This approach is a climate policy that works. Longship is the greatest climate project in Norwegian industry ever. We will cut emissions, not progress."

In August, Industrial Info reported that Northern Lights had been awarded 2.1 billion euro ($2.45 billion) in funding by the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) Surveillance Authority (ESA). For additional information, see August 4, 2020, article - Norway's Carbon Storage Project Gets $2.45 Billion in Funding.

In September 2019, a group of leading European steel and cement makers announced their support for Northern Lights. They included Air Liquide, ArcelorMittal S.A. (NYSE:MT) (Luxembourg), Ervia, Fortum Oyj, HeidelbergCement AG (Heidelberg, Germany), Preem AB (Stockholm, Sweden), and Stockholm Exergi. For additional information, see September 18, 2019, article - Heavy Industry Giants Back Norway's Biggest Carbon Capture Project.

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