A CLIMIT-supported project will contribute to deliveries to ISO TC265. Purpose is to design international standards and technical reports for CCS and CO2-EOR.
By using internationally recognized standards, important barriers to the spread of CO2 management can be dismantled.
– International standards are crucial for advancing CCS, especially for CCS value chains across national borders. Norway has skilled experts in the field, and we are pleased that CLIMIT can contribute to supporting IOM Law in this important work – says Camilla Bergsli, senior advisor at Gassnova.
ISO TC265 was established in 2011, and today 28 countries participate in the negotiations. ISO TC265 has six working groups, each covering an element of the value chain – capture, transport, storage, cross-cutting issues, CO2 transport by ship, and CO2-EOR. “Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery” (CO2-EOR) is a method used to increase the amount of oil extracted from exploration fields, where the injected and utilized CO2 is stored in the reservoir. A separate committee under Standards Norway coordinates the participation of Norwegian experts in the various working groups – representing the span of Norwegian CCS and CCUS knowledge.
Standards and technical reports which are developed, create common understanding, gather and spread technical expertise, and provide a commercial basis for the technologies. Moreover, safe and effective implementation of CCS and CO2-EOR increases acceptance among decision-makers and in society at large.
The purpose of this CLIMIT-supported project is to contribute to the finalization and publication of documents in ISO TC265, support Norwegian experts in promoting the country’s interests, and disseminate knowledge about the standards and the work. Norwegian matters and needs must be considered so that the documents are correctly applied in Norway, and do not conflict with Norwegian frameworks. ISO TC265 aims to contribute to predictability, cost reductions, and operational frameworks within the legal preconditions in a Norwegian, European, and international framework.
– Standardization is an important building block for the commercialization of CCS. We see that more companies are using the TC265 standards in their projects. Authorities from around the world have adopted these standards or are considering doing so, to bridge gaps or regulate technical details in their own CCS frameworks. In its Industrial Carbon Management-strategy from February this year, EU has communicated an increased focus on the use of standards for the European CCS framework.
This is to facilitate a commercial European market for CCS, and underscores that the work being done in the Norwegian mirror committee is more important than ever – says Ingvild Ombudstvedt, lawyer at IOM Law.
Ingvild Ombudstvedt ready to work for new standards.
The storage standard (27914) from 2017 has been reopened for revision, e.g. to include tools for quantification and verification of stored CO2 volumes. A lot of work was put into the first part of the project. An updated standard is aimed for 2025. Furthermore, the technical report for converting CO2-EOR to pure storage was almost completed in the fall of 2023. Publication is expected in 2024.
Fall 2023, the technical report for CO2 ship transport was also sent for review by the international committee. Publication is expected in 2024.
In 2023, there have been numerous activities related to the dissemination of project results, and assistance to new ISO TC265 countries. Presentations have been conducted at TCCS in Trondheim and at the 100-year anniversary of Standards Norway in Oslo. Additionally, in workshops for Asian developing countries organized by the U.S. Department of Commerce, experts from Norway, USA, Canada, Japan, and Australia have shared views and experiences from the standardization work.
The project has contributed to completion of technical reports concerning the conversion of CO2-EOR to pure storage, and concerning CO2-transport by ship. The U.S. Department of Commerce – Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP), has recognized the value of ISO TC265 for regulatory development of CCUS in developing countries.
In the latter part of 2023, a technical committee for CCUS was established in the European Committee for Standardization. This committee will focus on converting more of the standards under TC265, into European matters – as well as negotiating new standards in which the ISO standards do not consider. Norwegian representatives participate in this work going forward.
In the phase between CO2 capture and storage, there will be a need for an infrastructure network, where CO2 transport is planned and coordinated at a national level. CLIMIT has granted NOK 200,000 for a concept study under the direction of SINTEF Industry and SINTEF Energy, which will further explore the future transport routes for CO2.
Ragnhild Skagestad from SINTEF Industry leads the study, which could result in a contribution to a possible “National Transport Plan” for CO2 – similar to the current Norwegian National Transport Plan (NTP), a document which outlines Norway’s transport policy and investments for a twelve-year period.
– At SINTEF we are now focusing on developing a roadmap for CO2 management, which includes the transportation of CO2 between and within clusters that are already involved in the handling of CO2. The project is in a study phase, with the potential to become a full-scale national initiative. The goal is to develop a holistic approach which integrates the various industry segments for better collaboration and efficiency – says Ragnhild.
One of the biggest challenges is coordinating the transportation of CO2, from various capture sites to storage sites. The project is considering different transport methods – such as pipelines, ships, trains, and trucks – each with their unique challenges and requirements. It’s crucial to create infrastructure which also covers future needs, so that pipes and storage may accommodate increasing CO2-volumes.
Ragnhild and her colleagues at SINTEF are evaluating how standardized CO2 transport methods can be effectively utilized, to handle different geographical and industrial conditions while exploiting site-specific advantages. – For instance, pipelines may be ideal in some regions, and shipping might be better suited in other parts of the country. Transnational CO2 transport may lead to other transport needs – Ragnhild notes.
An agreement was recently signed between several countries, including Norway, making transnational CO2 transport legal.
Norway has a unique position thanks to its advanced technological knowledge and experience from the offshore sector. This project has the potential to set standards that could also be implemented across Europe. SINTEF is in dialogue with the EU to develop a joint strategy which also considers country specific conditions and needs.
– We interact closely with industrial clusters to ensure that the solutions we develop are scalable and adaptable. This involves exchanging knowledge and technologies that can promote the standardization of the infrastructure. Coordinating the CO2 networks is absolutely essential to achieve an effective national strategy – Ragnhild adds.
Through the project, SINTEF will engage in dialogue and collaboration with ongoing clusters in various locations across Norway. This includes all, from large industrial conglomerates to innovative startups. During the concept study, a workshop will be held where potential partners are invited. The collaboration also extends to academic institutions to ensure the project stays up to date with the latest research.
Ragnhild is optimistic and looks forward to moving from ideas to a feasibility study, where a roadmap for CO2 infrastructure will be developed. This includes detailed mapping of CO2 sources and potential storage sites, along with the development of efficient and sustainable infrastructure. The goal is to create a robust system for future CO2 infrastructure, not only serving Norway but also addresses global challenges.
– This CO2 infrastructure project has the potential to strengthen Norway’s position as a leader in CO2 management. By developing technologies and then sharing them, SINTEF’s work can contribute to European collaboration against the climate change. This combines industrial development and sustainability – says Ernst Petter Axelsen, senior advisor at Gassnova and CLIMIT.
A CLIMIT-supported research project has made progress in capture technology for industrial emission sources with low CO2 concentration.
Liquid absorbent solutions, such as amines, can be used to capture CO2 in flue gases from various types of processes. The project addressed the challenges of absorption-based CO2 capture processes, which have proven to be less effective when dealing with diluted gas streams. Emission sources with low CO2 concentration can vary widely depending on industry, technology, and emission reduction measures.
An example of low-CO2 emission sources is flue gases from the combustion of natural gas, which generally have a lower concentration compared to coal or heavy oil. – The purpose of this project was to explore and improve the efficiency of carbon capture related to flue gases with lower CO2 concentrations, and to investigate whether degradation products in the absorbent affected the capture capacity – says Svein Bekken, senior advisor at Gassnova.
The research team conducted a series of pilot and laboratory tests. A mobile testing unit (MTU) was used to investigate carbon capture processes at CO2 concentrations of 2.5 to 5%. Tests showed that even with low CO2 concentrations, it was possible to achieve capture efficiency between 85 and 95 percent. The results also indicated a significant increase in energy consumption for carbon capture at lower CO2 concentrations, which was expected from theoretical calculations.
Laboratory tests were also conducted to study the effect of degradation products on the solution’s absorption properties. The tests indicated that degradation products examined did not significantly affect the solution’s ability to absorb CO2.
This project has achieved its main objectives by demonstrating the feasibility of effective CO2 capture at lower concentrations, without simultaneously proving fundamental obstacles to the use of technology. Research also shows that some degradation products could be partially regenerated, opening up savings in solvent consumption.
– These findings represent important steps forward for plants operating with lower CO2 concentrations in the flue gases. The insights will be further utilized in the implementation of more efficient carbon capture solutions for a range of industrial applications – Svein Bekken states.
Project partner: University of South-East Norway
Project leader: Aker Carbon Capture
The aim of the MeDORA project is to develop a more durable solution for CO2 capture by combining amine-based capture technology with a membrane that removes the dissolved oxygen from the solvent.
The amine used to capture CO2 degrades over time, mainly due to contact with oxygen. The MeDORA project may provide a solution to this problem and will demonstrate that the use of membrane technology will further reduce the operating costs of carbon capture plants using amine solutions to capture CO2. – By avoiding the degradation of the amine solution, both the efficiency and lifetime of the CO2 capture technology will be improved. This will reduce costs,” says project manager Luca Ansaloni, SINTEF.
MeDORA stands for “Membrane-assisted Dissolved Oxygen Removal Apparatus”. The key challenge of the project is to remove the oxygen so effectively that amine degradation is significantly reduced. The aim is to remove 90% of the oxygen, which can lead to a 70% reduction in OPEX and a reduction in the environmental impact of the capture plant (less waste generation, reduced emissions). As a side-effect, MeDORA is also expected to achieve better quality of the CO2 product and reduce the cost of post-processing to meet CO2 transport specifications. – These are ambitious goals, but we believe they are achievable,” says Aage Stangeland, ACT coordinator at the Research Council of Norway.
The MeDORA project started just after the summer last year and is still in its early stages. It is an international collaboration with partners such as SINTEF, NTNU, Aker Carbon Capture, RWE Power, TNO and HVC. The Norwegian partners have received NOK 8 million from the CLIMIT programme through the international ACT collaboration for the period until 2026.
The development of CCS technologies, as represented by MeDORA, faces three main challenges:
MeDORA is part of the ACT programme, which accelerates and matures CCUS technologies by funding international research and innovation projects. The Research Council of Norway and Gassnova are the Norwegian representatives in ACT, and the CLIMIT programme contributes funds to ACT’s calls for proposals.
It is through initiatives such as ACT that Norwegian companies interact with leading international environments – as Aker Carbon Capture is now doing through the MeDORA project.
Kari-Lise Rørvik from Gassnova is head of the CLIMIT Secretariat. In this interview, she looks back at CLIMIT 2023 and ahead to 2024.
Among the important events in 2023, Kari-Lise highlights the CLIMIT Summit in February. Which took place at Kulturhuset Bølgen in Larvik. – After the pandemic, we finally had the opportunity to meet in person, in addition to those who chose to follow the event online. The CLIMIT Summit has become an important arena with broad international participation. This time we had the pleasure of having Kristin Halvorsen from CICERO as our moderator. Minister Terje Aasland from the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy opened the CLIMIT Summit with an overview of the government’s CCS policy. The main theme of the conference was Longship. – What connects CLIMIT to Longship now. – How CLIMIT can contribute to the development of successful CCS projects in the future. There were three intensive days of plenary presentations and CCS Speed Dates. These gave participants a 10-minute insight into different CLIMIT supported projects. This CLIMIT Summit was a great start to the year. Thanks to solid speakers on stage and a dedicated crew from Gassnova and the Research Council of Norway.
When challenged, Kari-Lise will not highlight individual projects as her favourite this year. – It is more important to take a holistic perspective and see how CLIMIT projects have developed – as for monitoring, where technology developed by CLIMIT-supported projects can be used in future CO2 storage monitoring. These projects represent arenas where industry and R&D resources jointly find sustainable solutions. CLIMIT celebrates its first 20 years in 2025 and is an increasingly important arena of collaboration between government and industry, characterized by trust and common goals.
Kari-Lise believes that learning does not end, and work is not finished, when Langskip comes into operation. – When the industry reveals new challenges and opportunities, this will be looped back to the R&D resources, which must further develop the basic research and solutions they first came up with. The CLIMIT programme must be improved in line with these needs. CCS Clusters spread along Norway will play an increasingly important role when experiences from industry and R&D are to lead CCS innovation.
Gassnovas collaboration with the Norwegian Research Council is particularly good. – Gassnova and the Council have a trusting relationship and common understanding, including through the secretariat meetings. Together we find good projects, with an inbuild reverence to our respective domains. Together, we are able to dedicate project to the relevant body of cooperation. In fact, we have 18 years’ experience of working together, says Kari-Lise.
“In December 2024, we will look back on a year in which the interaction and cooperation between industry, business, academia, authorities and granting government bodies have taken further steps forward.”
When looking back in exactly one year from now, Kari-Lise; what has happened in 2024? – The collaboration on Pilot-E with Enova, the Norwegian Research Council and Innovation Norway has been a success! We are now entering Pilot-E with extensive CCS knowledge and support via the CLIMIT programme. The Pilot-E call is aimed at projects developing solutions enabling carbon capture to be put into use by 2030. More specifically, this applies to carbon capture from large, onshore points of emissions in Norway – which also enables decreased costs and risks. Then I will continue to be hugely impressed by the many local Industrial Clusters. They enthusiastically embrace CCS with a holistic approach, deeply involved to find sustainable and cost-effective solutions.
The aCQurate project has developed methods for quantifying important operational parameters related to how to inject CO2.
The project is supported with NOK 14 million from CLIMIT.
CCS projects of the future are not only dependent on reliable and accurate monitoring. But also that monitoring takes place as cost-effectively as possible. This requires smart use of all available information, and different data sources are processed and combined as precisely as possible.
aCQurate has developed a methodology (“Joint Inversion”) for combined interpretation of several different types of geophysical data, to quantify the underlying subsoil properties as accurately as possible.
aCQurate was established in 2016 as a collaboration between SINTEF and other world-leading resources within CO2 monitoring in Canada, USA and Germany. In addition, the project had active participation from Equinor and Trondheim-based Quad Geometrics. The work largely consisted of further developing SINTEF’s software for “Joint Inversion”. The software was tested with data from two field laboratories: Ketzin in Germany and the Field Research Station in Canada. This was done to ensure that the methodology would work in full-scale storage projects. This helped us to do unique discoveries on which we want to build on, says Peder Eliasson, research leader in Geophysics at SINTEF Industri. In partnership with project manager Michael Jordan, senior researcher at SINTEF Industri, he highlights three main results:
– We have done research in CO2 monitoring for almost two decades. And have been working on the development of a progressively more complex “Joint Inversion” methodology for almost as long.
But the industry did not invest as much in CCS research then as it does today. The project had a complicated constellation of partners with representatives from the USA and Canada. Combined with the use of new field data from the Field Research Station in Calgary, where aCQurate participated. This was organized is reminiscent of today’s ACT and CETP projects, and would not have been possible then without CLIMIT, says Peder Eliasson.
SINTEF is well underway with development of methodology after aCQurate, which is now being continued via the ACT project SPARSE. This project will use the “Joint Inversion” technology for a low-cost, node-based monitoring system, which is also under development in SPARSE. Innovations related to the use of passive seismic for monitoring CO2 are also taken forward in the Green Platform project LINCCS and in FME NCCS. – These are good examples of CLIMIT’s investments accelerating major international breakthrough projects – concludes Kari-Lise Rørvik, Head of Secretariat for CLIMIT.
Representatives from academia and industry from the US and Norway gathered for two days in Washington DC.
The US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (MPE) have a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on CCS. The Research Council organises meetings with the DOE approximately once a year. The aim is to promote cooperation and joint projects to accelerate the development and implementation of carbon capture and storage.
The meeting is held every two years in Norway and the USA. This year the meeting was held in Washington DC from 31 October to 1 November. In addition to cooperation on capture and storage, topics such as CO2 transport, CDR (carbon dioxide removal) and hydrogen were discussed.
Norway and the US already have good cooperation through joint calls for proposals in the former ACT (Accelerating CCS Technologies) and now CETP (Clean Energy Transition Partnership). Long-term cooperation has been established in technology development at the Mongstad Technology Centre (TCM), and we are also working together through Mission Innovation on both hydrogen and CDR. Norway is a leader in BiCRS (Biomass with Carbon Removal and Storage).
A total of 70 participants were registered for the meeting. Of which 46 participated physically. Ten people from Norway participated physically, while the other 15 from Norway participated virtually until late in the evening Norwegian time. SINTEF, NORCE, Aker Solutions, Baker Hughes, TCM, Gassnova, the Research Council of Norway and MPE were physically represented at the meeting.
There is a lot of activity in this area in the US due to both the 45Q tax incentive and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), both of which were strengthened and passed in the US in 2022.
The agenda, a summary of the meeting with the main conclusions and all presentations can be found here.
Next year’s meeting will be held in Norway. We will inform you about the time and place.
Primo October 2023 the ACT consortium held a successful Workshop in Paris.
The aim of the Workshop was to ensure fruitful knowledge sharing and increase collaboration between the ACT funded projects and engage with other CCUS initiatives and stakeholders. All aligned with the overall ACT ambition to facilitate research and innovation of CO2 capture, transport, utilisation and storage technologies. ACT aims to accelerate and mature CCUS technologies by funding transnational research and innovation projects. Sixteen countries, regions and provinces are working together in ACT with the ambition to fund world class research, development and innovation that can lead to safe and cost effective CCUS technology.
Main focus during the two days in Paris was to share knowledge, experiences and results gained in the ongoing ACT3 projects and the knowledge and the ambitions of ACT4 projects. The event proved to be an excellent opportunity for generating new ideas and building new networks.
Topics were «Building industrial case for CO2 capture», «Building business cases for sustainable CO2 utilisation», «Upscaling to CO2 storage in giga-ton scale» and «Research and innovation needed for CCUS deployment».
The opening session on 4th October was conducted by Gerdi Breembroek, followed by a presentation of French Ministry of Education and representative Xavier Montagne.
By Gerdi Breembroek (.pdf)
The event shown to be an excellent opportunity to improve understanding and take advantage of the increasing momentum for CCS, CCU and CDR.
The venue in Paris was held by Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR).
The presentations from the workshop can be downloaded as soon as ACT have confirmation from the presenter to publish their slides. The list at this link will continuously be updated as soon as they hear from the presenters.
Please see the presentations at ACT Knowledge Sharing Workshop.
ACT is an international initiative to establish CO2 capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) as a tool to combat global warming.
ACT means Accelerating CCS Technologies, and the ambition of the 16 partners is to fund research and innovation projects that can lead to safe and cost-effective CCUS technology.
Since ACT’s start in 2015 participating organizations have allocated 108 million euro in funding for 39 international research, development and innovation (RD&I) projects.
The IEAGHG ExCo had its spring meeting on 17-18 May in Bali in Indonesia with Institute Technology Bandung (ITB) as host.
The meeting was both physical and virtual, with only partial Norwegian participation virtual.
IEAGHG is an observer to the IPCC’s Synthesis Report (SYR) of the 6th Assessment Report (AR6), which was published on 20 March 2023. IEAGHG has contributed several review inputs.
IEAGHG’s summer school was last held at ITB, Bandun, Indonesia in November 2022. Every year, a prize is given to the best students. This year it was a Norwegian student who received an award, Katherine Jimenez from NORCE in addition to Debanjan Chandra from Delft in the Netherlands.
A summary of GHGT-16, which was held in Lyon in October 2022, has been prepared. At the GHGT conferences, it is a tradition that a “Greenman award” is issued to people who have contributed significantly within CCS. At the GHG-16 conference in 2022, Trude Sundset, former director of Gassnova, received the “Greenman award”.
An important part of the IEAGHG meeting is the review of reports that have been published since the last time, those that are underway and the adoption of new reports.
Technical Reports (ieaghg.org)
| Study | Contractor | Report number |
| Integrating CCS in international cooperation and carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement | Carbon Counts | 2023-01 |
| Study | Contractor | Study number | Publication date |
| Baseline Techno-Economic Assessment of Small-Scale Carbon Capture for Industrial and Power Systems | Element Energy | 58-12 | May 2023 |
| The Role of Indices in Assessing the Maturity of CCUS Technologies and Readiness for Deployment | Foresight Transitions Ltd | 58-03 | May 2023 |
| Cost-curves for Electrochemical CO2 Conversion Technologies | TNO | 59-03 | June 2023 |
| Components of CCS Infrastructure – Temporary CO2 Storage Options | TNO | 59-05 | June 2023 |
| Co-benefits of CCS Deployment in Industry | Element Energy | 60-02 | June 2023 |
| Power CCUS – Potential for Cost reductions and Improvements | Element Energy | 60-03 | June 2023 |
| Prospective Integration of Geothermal Energy with CCS | BRGM | 60-11 | June 2023 |
| SRMS-Derived Total Storage Resources and Storage Coefficients | BGS | 60-10 | July 2023 |
| Study | Contractor |
| Evolution of Conformance and Containment Risk Over Time in CO2 Storage Projects | BGS |
| Compatibility of CCUS with Net Zero Power | Wood Italiana Srl |
| Reviewing the Environmental and Public Health Implications of CO2 Migration to the Surface or Shallow Subsurface | CSIRO |
| Clean Steel: Environmental and Technoeconomic Outlook of a Disruptive Technology | Element Energy |
| International Standards and Testing for Novel Carbonaceous Building Materials | Imperial Consultants (ICON) |
| Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) for Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGRs) | Carbon Counts |
| CCUS and Public Perception (Stage 1) | Curtin University |
| Comparative analysis of electrolytic hydrogen production technologies with low-carbon (CCS-abated) hydrogen production pathways | Element Energy |
| Seal Integrity Review | CO2CRC |
| Multi-metric Analysis of Dispatchable Gas and Coal Power Plants with CCS in the Energy Storage Industry | Red Vector Ltd |
| New studies approved |
| Transport and storage cost review |
| Review of CO2 storage in basalt, risks and monitoring |
| CO2 transportation & storage availability – expected rates and options for improvements |
| CO2 fiscal metering |
| Critical study on waste-to-(low carbon) hydrogen |
The adopted studies were largely in accordance with the Norwegian prioritization.
Clean Energy Transition Platform (CETP) is a new international collaboration for research and innovation within low-carbon energy technologies, including CCS. Highlights will be shown at the upcoming annual conference 24-25 October.
Funding agencies from more than 30 countries have joined forces in CETP and are setting up joint annual calls for new research and innovation projects. CETP can fund projects with impact for the green energy transition.
All you need to know about the partnership is available at the CETP web site.
A new call for project proposals will be launched in September 2023 and the draft call text is already available here.
The CETPartnership is a multilateral and strategic partnership of national and regional research, development and innovation (RDI) programmes in European Member States and Associated Countries, aiming to boost and accelerate the energy transition and to support the implementation of the European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan).
You are all welcome to join the first Annual CETP Conference on 24th & 25th of October. It is designed to be a online gathering of diverse stakeholders with the common goal of fostering a global shift towards clean and sustainable energy systems.
