Liverpool Bay CCS Limited has signed a seabed lease with The Crown Estate, clearing a key hurdle for the United Kingdom’s first carbon capture and storage (CCS) project to repurpose existing offshore oil and gas infrastructure for permanent carbon dioxide (CO2) storage.
The project, owned by Eni’s CCUS Holding group, underpins the HyNet North West industrial decarbonization cluster, one of two clusters selected by the UK government in 2021 under its Track-1 program.
Under the lease, Liverpool Bay CCS gains access to the seabed and former North Sea infrastructure to transport and store CO2 captured from industrial facilities across North West England and North Wales.
Reusing Infrastructure To Accelerate Storage
The project will repurpose more than 75 miles of existing pipelines, three offshore structures, and an onshore treatment plant, supplemented by 21 miles of new pipeline connecting industrial emitters to the Liverpool Bay network.
CO2 will initially be captured from cement, low-carbon hydrogen, and energy-from-waste facilities before being permanently injected into depleted offshore gas reservoirs beneath Liverpool Bay.
Phase 1 is projected to store 109 million tonnes of CO2 over its operational life, with initial capacity of 4.5 million tonnes per year and potential expansion to 10 million tonnes per year after 2030.
Relevant: Eni Awards Saipem $590M Contract For Liverpool Bay CCS Development
The project is expected to support around 2,000 jobs during construction and unlock roughly £2 billion (nearly $2.7 billion) in supply chain investment, with first injection targeted for 2028.
“Repurposing our existing infrastructure helps to speed up the process by which we can tackle CO2 emissions from industry in the North West of England and North Wales,” said Stefano Rovelli, managing director of Liverpool Bay CCS.
“The Liverpool Bay CCS lease with The Crown Estate is yet another exciting step forward for UK CCUS deployment,” said Olivia Powis, CEO of the Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA). “Sustaining momentum on deployment is now critical to delivering the UK’s industrial ambitions at scale.”
The project received an Agreement for Lease from The Crown Estate in August 2024 and reached financial close in April 2025.
Read more: First UK Offshore CCS Project Moves To Construction
