Norway has opened another new application process for licences for carbon dioxide storage in an area of the country’s North Sea.
The country’s Ministry of Petroleum & Energy on Wednesday issued a call for licence applications for the development of subsea areas of the Norwegian continental shelf as CO2 storage reservoirs.
The licences, which cover one area in the North Sea off the coast of Farsund in the south of the country, will allow the transport of CO2, injection and storage in the appointed reservoirs.
The government said “companies that have the necessary competency and that have matured industrially sound and profitable projects will be able to apply for a licence adjusted to the company’s need”.
Applications will be reviewed by the ministry, which will be assessing the applicants’ expertise and business case for awarding a licence, which may also include special environmental and fishery conditions prerequisites.
Awarded licensees will be subject to work commitment deadlines set by the ministry.
The window for applications is open until 3 January 2023.
This is the fourth time offshore acreage is being tendered by the Norwegian authorities for CO2 storage on the Norwegian continental shelf.
Last October, German oil and gas producer Wintershall Dea was awarded a CO2 storage licence for the Luna acreage in the Norwegian North Sea. The area could store up to 5 million tonnes per annum of CO2.
