First CO₂ storage project in the Netherlands is launched

Porthos has made the final investment decision. This will allow construction of the first major CO2 transport and storage system in the Netherlands to start in 2024. A major milestone for Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) in the Netherlands and for Gasunie as co-initiator. The Porthos infrastructure involves an investment amount of €1.3 billion. Now that the final investment decision has been taken, Porthos will award the final contracts to the contractors who will realise the project. The Porthos system is expected to be operational in 2026.

Porthos will store about 2.5 Mtonnes of CO₂ per year for 15 years, to a total of about 37 Mtonnes. With that, Porthos is sold out. The onshore transport system that is being constructed does provide space for future CO2 storage projects.

Hans Meeuwsen, director of Porthos: "CO₂ storage is crucial if we want to achieve the climate goals in the Netherlands. This investment decision is an important starting point for future developments in CO₂ storage in the Netherlands."

According to Hans Coenen, member of Gasunie's Executive Board, this is an important moment for Gasunie and the first major investment in CO₂ transport. "The transport of CO₂ forms for us - alongside the transport of hydrogen, heat and green gas - an important link in the further development of energy infrastructure necessary for the energy transition."

Porthos is a joint venture of EBN, Gasunie, and the Port of Rotterdam Authority. Porthos will provide transport and storage services to several companies in the port of Rotterdam, including Air Liquide, Air Products, ExxonMobil, and Shell. These companies will invest in their own capture installations to supply CO₂ to Porthos. Porthos will transport the CO₂ through the port of Rotterdam to depleted gas fields in the North Sea, approximately 20 km off the coast, where it will be permanently stored at a depth of 3 to 4 km under the seabed.

To realise the project, Porthos partners with TAQA Energy, the present operator of the P18 gas fields, and specialised contractors and suppliers such as Denys N.V., Allseas, LMR Drilling GmbH, Mannesmann Grossrohr GmbH, Corinth Pipeworks, Equans, Ensco Offshore, Van der Ven and Bonatti. Together, under Porthos’s direction, they will deliver the required infrastructure. 

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is a cost-effective way to keep large amounts of CO₂ emissions out of the atmosphere in the short term. It is therefore an important pillar of the Dutch government's climate policy. Thanks to Porthos, the Rotterdam port industry will soon emit about 10% less CO₂. At the same time, the industry is working on the transition to processes based on renewable energy and raw materials. 

The European Union recognised Porthos as an important project in meeting climate targets, declaring Porthos a Project of Common Interest and awarded €102 million in subsidy for it.