Expro to deliver well testing for UK’s first offshore CO2 storage project

Energy services provider Expro has been appointed to deliver integrated well testing services for the UK’s first offshore carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, being developed by a joint venture of BP, Equinor and TotalEnergies.

Being developed around 75 kilometers east of Flamborough Head, the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP) project will comprise an onshore CO2 gathering network, compression facilities and a 145-kilometer offshore pipeline connected to subsea injection facilities in the Endurance saline aquifer located around 1,000 meters below the seabed.

This infrastructure will initially serve the Teesside-based East Coast Cluster (ECC) carbon capture projects – NZT Power, H2Teesside and Teesside Hydrogen CO2 Capture – that were selected for first connection to NEP by DESNZ in March 2023 as part of the UK’s cluster sequencing process for carbon capture usage and storage (CCUS).

Expro has been awarded a contract by NEP to provide critical services that will be needed to appraise two wells in the Endurance reservoir – with the capacity to store up to 450 million tons of CO2, for future CCS suitability and will deliver operations using capabilities and technologies from its well testing, fluid sampling and analysis, and subsea business segments.

To provide a fully integrated CCS appraisal solution, Expro has selected Baker Hughes to supply its electrical submersible pumps (ESP) and metrol technology for drill stem testing (DST), downhole data acquisition and wireless telemetry services.

According to the company, the production and injection testing of the Endurance aquifer will provide important information that will be used to characterize the reservoir as part of the ECC field development plan.

“Our success in securing this contract for the Northern Endurance Partnership demonstrates Expro’s ability to use our reservoir appraisal and well test capabilities, that have traditionally been used for the development of oil and gas reservoirs, to help kick-off the carbon storage industry in the UK,” said Iain Farley, Regional Vice President for Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa at Expro.

“This contract win builds on the success of the integrated well testing services that Expro has also provided to Equinor for the Northern Lights CCS project in Norway. It also demonstrates our commitment to the UK’s CCS program and the opportunities it is expected to create for local employment, economies, and supply chains.” 

NEP has been granted the first Carbon Dioxide Transport and Storage Licence in the UK under the Transportation and Storage Regulatory Investment (TRI) regime that unlocks private investment in long-term infrastructure by providing incentives and protections in developing a nascent CCUS market in the UK.

The project has also been granted a CO2 storage permit by the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), which will enable CO2 injection and storage to commence when the infrastructure is complete.

Construction is expected to begin this year, while first injection could come as early as 2027 and start up in 2028. With a permitted injection rate of 4 million tons annually, averaged over a duration of 25 years, this could reach a total of 100 million tons.

U.S.-headquartered offshore drilling company Noble Corporation has been selected to drill six firm wells for the NEP project using its Noble Innovator jack-up rig, slated to begin in Q3 2026.

BP, which is the operator, and Equinor each have 45% stakes in the project, while 10% is held by TotalEnergies.