Page 44: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (August 2023)

CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE

Did you know?

Northern Lights, while the ? rst project of the kind in Norway, is not the ? rst offshore carbon storage project in the country. Namely, according to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, since 1996, CO2 has been removed from the Sleipner Vest gas in the North Sea and injected in the

Utsira Formation. One million tonnes of CO2 from the Equinor-operated

Sleipner ? eld are stored in the subsurface every year.

Also, according to NPD, since 2007, 700 000 tonnes of CO2 per year has been stored at the Snøhvit offshore ? eld in the Barents Sea. CO2 is separated from the gas in the process facility on Melkøya before it is sent by pipeline down into a reservoir located around 140 kilometers from land. Regular surveys are performed to monitor how injected CO2 ? lls the storage area.

tem and insulation to maintain a temperature that keeps the store nearly 700 tonnes of CO2 each.

CO2 in a liquid state, including a special high-tensile-strength They will serve as an intermediate storage for the CO2 nickel steel alloy with a tank wall thickness of 50 mm. brought in by the ships, before being transported into the sub-

The two vessels, designed to transport liquid CO2 with pur- sea aquifer. Aker Solutions was responsible for the lifting and pose-built pressurized cargo tanks, are expected to be ready installation of the tanks.

for delivery by mid-2024. Also, the terminal could be expanded by a second jetty to

Being built for a project that aims to reduce emissions, the cater for additional volumes of imported CO2 from larger vessels themselves are designed for low-emission operations. ships, additional intermediate storage for CO2 with additional

The main fuel for the ships will be LNG. Other innovative volume, and additional CO2 export pumps, as supported by technologies, such as a wind-assisted propulsion system and the EU, as mentioned earlier.

air lubrication are planned to be installed to reduce carbon

First Mover intensity by around 34% compared to conventional systems.

The Danish marine pumps specialist Svanehøj is supplying In the 2022 annual report, Northern Lights’ Jacobsen said, deepwell cargo gas pumps for the two CO2 carriers. Northern Lights CCS is a key technology to decarbonize

First steel for the ships was cut in November 2022, and the hard-to-abate industries in Norway and Europe, and reach keel laying ceremony was held in April 2023. The ships, clas- the goals set in the Paris Agreement, achieving net zero si? ed by DNV and sailing under Norwegian ? ag, are expected emissions by 2050. to be delivered in 2024. Once delivered they will be operated “The message from IEA and the IPCC is clear; net zero is by “K” LINE on behalf of Northern Lights JV. near impossible without CCS. “In 2024, we will be ready to receive CO2 volumes, ini-

Onshore Storage Tanks tially through Longship (Norcem and Celsio), and then also

In its 2022 annual report, Northern Lights said that the Øy- commercial volumes. One of the de? ned key success criteria garden CO2 receiving terminal had been more than 75% com- for the Norwegian Government, and for us, is to demonstrate pleted by year end. the potential in CO, transport and storage as a service.

Since then, the percentage has increased, as the company “It is an important part of our mandate to share our knowl- on June 2 said that it had installed all 12 CO2 storage tanks edge and experience as a catalyst for creating a commercial at the plant. CCS market. Northern Lights is a ? rst mover, and we encour-

These tanks, standing at 32.5 meters tall, boast a capacity to age others to follow.” 44 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • August 2023

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