Norway has granted two new offshore areas to oil and gas companies for the potential storage of CO2.
Harbour Energy and Equinor have been awarded Block EXL012 in the North Sea, while Equinor and Aker BP have received Block EXL013, also situated in the North Sea, with Equinor serving as the operator for both blocks.
These awards mark the seventh instance where acreage has been allocated for CO2 storage purposes in Norway, bringing the total number of CO2 storage permits to twelve.
Notably, all three companies involved – Harbour Energy, Equinor, and Aker BP – already possess ownership stakes in previously granted CO2 storage licenses within the country.
Equinor recently commenced drilling the initial well of two planned carbon capture and storage wells at its fully-owned offshore license, EXL002, situated at the Smeaheia/CO2 Highway Europe project.
The drilling operations are being conducted using the Deepsea Stavanger, a semi-submersible rig owned by Odfjell Drilling. According to Odfjell, the primary objective of this well is to gather crucial data and insights to enhance the understanding of the reservoir for future carbon capture and storage wells.
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The two newly awarded permits are subject to a binding work program with established milestones. This framework aims to ensure efficient progress and includes a provision for relinquishment of the acreage if the licensees fail to complete the planned storage project.
Norway’s Minister of Energy, Terje Aasland, commented: “These exploration licences are offered to companies that have presented good plans for the development of CO2 storage.”
“A number of players in the industry have shown interest in new storage areas. This makes me optimistic about further progress in the work to make CO2 storage part of the solution to the world’s climate challenge.”
Read more: UK And Norway To Collaborate On Renewable Energy And Cross-Border CO2 Capture
