Carbon capture proposals for the Humber bank have been expanded, with the award of additional licences to increase storage by more than 50 per cent.
Harbour Energy, the operator of the Viking CCS network, together with its non-operating partner BP, has been granted permissions for zones alongside the initial consent secured in the Southern North Sea. Early estimates are it could add another 150 million tonnes to the decarbonisation project for heavy industry.
Steve Cox, Harbour Energy’s executive vice president of net zero and CCS, said: “The award of these new licences is another important step forward to help scale up our carbon capture, transportation and storage plans in the UK, and another demonstration of the valuable role the oil and gas sector can bring to the development of this nascent industry. The potential for additional storage capacity could play a vital role in supporting the UK to meet its net zero goals while also creating thousands of skilled British jobs.”
Viking CCS, awarded Track Two status by the government in July, will serve the Humber Zero project, led by Phillips 66 Humber Refinery and the expanding neighbouring combined heat and power plant from VPI. Further partners like RWE and Prax are also being secured, with new build power and process operations signing up, while also accommodating imports. ABP is developing the multi-use Immingham Green Energy Terminal to handle shipping, be it from other UK clusters or Europe.
Read more: The insanity continues: Storage expansion boost for Humber’s carbon capture plan
