Five northern European countries, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Sweden, have established arrangements allowing cross-border transport and storage of captured CO2, advancing a European infrastructure for carbon capture and storage (CCS).
As informed, these agreements build on previous collaborations, including Norway and the Netherlands’ 2021 arrangement on energy cooperation and similar agreements with Belgium and Denmark in subsequent years. Sweden and Denmark concluded a similar arrangement, too. This new agreement aims to remove some of the obstacles on the way to a well-functioning carbon capture and storage-market in the wide North Sea region.
Rob Jetten, the Netherlands’ former Minister for Climate and Energy, saw the cooperation as a significant step toward an open European CCS market, contributing to EU climate goals and economic development.
Carbon capture and storage is a tool that can capture some of the emissions that are very difficult to prevent – and capturing those emissions is necessary in order to reach European climate goals. That makes carbon capture and storage an essential climate tool.
… explained the Government of the Netherlands in a statement
Similarly, Norway’s former Minister of Energy, Terje Aasland, emphasized the potential for storing CO2 in Norwegian sites and the importance of cross-border solutions for CO2 transport.
Danish former Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities, Lars Aagaard, and Sweden’s former Minister for Climate and Environment, Romina Pourmokhtari, stressed the necessity of CCS and BECCS in achieving climate neutrality by 2050.
Belgian former Minister of the North Sea, Paul Van Tigchelt, and Walloon former Minister for Climate, Energy, Mobility, and Infrastructure, Philippe Henry, and Flemish former Minister for Justice and Enforcement, Environment, Energy and Tourism, Zuhal Demir, also highlighted the significance of carbon capture and storage for their respective regions and industries.
