The Carbon Removers, a Scotland-based company dedicated to engineered carbon removals, has just announced a groundbreaking deal to sequester 50,000 tonnes of CO2 permanently in a depleted oil field located 1,800 meters below the North Sea seabed. The deal is part of Greensand Future, the EU’s first operational CO2 storage facility aimed at mitigating climate change and operated by INEOS.
Greensand Future is set to capture and permanently store 400,000 tons of CO2 annually starting in 2025, with the potential to store up to 8,000,000 tons per year. The Carbon Removers’ CEO Richard Nimmons stated, “We believe the North Sea has a huge role to play in helping Europe achieve its Net Zero target. We’re delighted to be the first UK company to partner with Greensand Future operators, who share our ethos of finding practical ways to address emissions today, not in the distant future.”
The partnership between The Carbon Removers and Greensand Future will not only help the UK company scale up its offering of high-quality, permanent carbon removal credits but also aid in reaching decarbonization targets and accelerating the transition to Net Zero.
The first minister of Scotland, John Swinney, visited The Carbon Removers on site in Dumfries this week, stating, “It is inspiring to see companies like The Carbon Removers leading the way in delivering permanent carbon solutions.” This visit serves as a strong signal of Scotland’s support for local climate innovators such as The Carbon Removers.
The Carbon Removers, founded by brothers Ed and Richard Nimmons, has recently shown strong momentum with a multi-year carbon credit offtake agreement with British Airways signed in October, the visit of the first minister of Scotland on December 9th, and the announcement of a breakthrough contract for North Sea storage later that week.
Greensand Future, operated by INEOS and partnering with Harbour Energy and Nordsøfonden, is set to become the EU’s first operational CO2 storage facility aimed at mitigating climate change. The project aims to initiate storage operations in the Nini field in the Danish North Sea by the end of 2025 or early 2026. CO2 will be captured and liquified at Danish biomethane production plants, transported to the port of Esbjerg, and then shipped by Royal Wagenborg to the Nini field for safe and permanent storage.
The European Commission estimates that the EU will need to establish a carbon storage capacity of 250 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2040 to achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement. The results of Project Greensand have been verified by DNV, an independent and world-leading provider of risk, verification, and standardization services. The thorough technical verification ensures that the stored CO2 remains safely and permanently in the closed Nini West reservoir 1,800 meters below the North Sea seabed, as expected.
Derick is an experienced reporter having held multiple senior roles for large publishers across Europe. Specialist subjects include small business and financial emerging markets.