OGCI Climate Investments has entered into a strategic partnership with BP, Eni, Equinor, Occidental Petroleum, Shell, and Total to progress the Clean Gas Project, the UK’s first commercial full-chain Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) project in Teesside.
As previously reported, the UK’s first carbon capture, usage, and storage project could be up and running from the mid-2020s, under a plan announced by the UK energy minister Claire Perry at an event in Edinburgh on Wednesday.
Work to identify opportunities to transform UK’s fossil fuel infrastructure for use in carbon capture and storage, diversifying the oil and gas sector, is slated to start in early 2019.
Announcing the strategic partnership with the oil majors, OGCI Climate Investments said in a statement on Wednesday that the Clean Gas Project could form the heart of the Tees Valley CCUS Cluster that will deploy commercially viable, safe, environmentally responsible CCUS at scale.
It will combine CO2 capture from new efficient low-carbon power generation and local industrial emitters in Teesside. The project is a result of collaboration between OGCI Climate Investments, its member companies, central and local government and local industry.
OGCI said that the partnership would support the technical and commercial progression of the Clean Gas Project on to the next stage of development.
“As the project reaches this important phase, it becomes the anchor project for a decarbonized industrial cluster in Tees Valley, home to British industry. The partnership will continue to work with the government on commercial terms that support the stakeholders involved, including the Tees Valley Mayor, the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA), local industry, and the community,” OGCI stated.
CCUS critical for meeting climate goals
Pratima Rangarajan , CEO of OGCI Climate Investments, said: “CCUS is critical to meeting the climate goals of the Paris Agreement and Climate Investments is proud to move this project forward within the context of the Tees Valley Cluster.”
“The Clean Gas Project is an example of how industry can work together to bring forward proposals that support governments ambitions for CCUS; we recognize the work and commitment by the UK government, the Tees Valley Mayor, the TVCA and the South Tees Development Corporation to deliver the practical action needed to move CCUS forward.”
The Clean Gas Project will use natural gas to generate power, with CO2 then captured and transported by pipeline for storage in a formation under the Southern North Sea. The infrastructure created would enable industrial clusters in Teesside and elsewhere to capture and store CO2 from their processes. The clean CO2 could also attract CO2-utilization companies, revitalizing the region with new technologies and investment. As the project progresses, the team will be looking for additional partners across the full value chain. With these additional partners, progress of the project towards actual construction and operations will depend on agreements and approvals of all parties involved. It is anticipated that the project will then progress toward engineering design in 2019.
OGCI Climate Investments currently has four investments in CCUS and is exploring several early stage CCUS projects for future investment with the goal of leveraging the knowledge gained in advancing the Clean Gas Project. In 2019, the OGCI and Climate Investments will focus significant collaborative efforts to inject momentum into a global CCUS industry.