German oil and gas producer Wintershall Dea said on Thursday it was teaming up with other companies to expand carbon capture and storage activities around a hub near Hirtshals on Denmark's northern North Sea coast.
The hub will be linked to the Danish Greensand CCS project, in which Wintershall Dea is a key player. The company is aiming to safeguard gas usage - even as countries look to cut emissions - by collecting and storing the carbon dioxide, it releases rather than allowing it to enter the atmosphere.
"(Wintershall Dea) has joined other companies in signing an agreement to jointly pursue and develop the Greenport Scandinavia project," it said in a press release, without naming the other companies.
"By participating in Greenport Scandinavia, we are showing that we are driving decarbonization forward," it said, adding it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) and was applying for relevant CCS licenses.
Greenport Scandinavia will serve as a collection point for some 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 generated from biogas in the region and from countries on the Baltic Sea, from where it will be shipped to Greensand for storage in depleted oil fields.
Financial details were not disclosed.
First injections of CO2 test volumes at Greensand are planned for the beginning of 2023, with view to reaching 4-5 million tonnes of CO2 storage annually from 2030, Wintershall Dea said.
The firm has long-term plans to build up a business capturing 20-30 million tonnes of CO2 per annum by 2040, including deals with Norway, where sector peer E.ON has also forged some ties.
Some environmentalists say CCS technology serves to prolong the age of burning carbon for energy, and a more decisive shift to renewables is needed.
(Reuters - Reporting by Vera Eckert / Editing by Mark Potter)