Norway and France forge ties on carbon capture and storage

The governments of Norway and France have signed a letter of intent (LoI) to cooperate on the development and deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS).

The aim of the agreement is to promote the development of CCS by creating a framework for cooperation between the two countries to facilitate their sharing of technical knowledge, advice, skills and expertise.

As part of the cooperation, the two governments will consider and prepare a bilateral agreement to enable cross-border transportation and storage of CO2.

“Widespread CCS at the lowest possible cost will be necessary to achieve the goals we have committed to in the Paris Agreement. Cross-border cooperation is key, and CCS is an important priority for the Norwegian Government,” said Norway’s Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terje Aasland.

“This Letter of Intent confirms Norway and France’s mutual interest to work closer on cross-border transportation and storage of CO2. Norway will facilitate the development of CO2 storage on our continental shelf for industrial companies, French companies included.”

So far, four storage permits have been awarded on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), three in the North Sea and one in the Barents Sea.

Permit EL 001 in the North Sea was awarded to Northern Lights in 2019 and, this April, two more permits were allocated, one in the North Sea and one in the Barents Sea.

The North Sea one was awarded to Equinor, while the license in the Barents Sea was offered to a group consisting of Equinor, Horisont Energi, and Vår Energi. 

In October, Wintershall Dea Norge and CapeOmega were selected for an exploration permit for CO2 storage in the North Sea.

Norway’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energy is currently inviting applications for another area on the NCS that would be used for CO2 injection and storage.

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