OIES Podcast – Cross-border Transport of CO2
David Ledesma discusses with Ralf Dickel the future need for cross border movements of CO2. To achieve net zero GHG emissions by mid-century there will need substantial improvements in efficiency and roll out of renewables, but also decarbonizing fossil energies results in large volumes of CO2 to be sequestered in geological structures found in oil and gas producing countries. Oil and gas importing countries lacking such structures will need to export CO2 captured to achieve their net zero targets. Conversely oil and gas exporting countries have to import CO2 for sequestration if they are serious in meeting net zero of scope 3 emissions, i.e. the CO2 emissions resulting from their exported fossil energies.
Norway today produces approximately 2 mbd oil and 110 Bcma of gas resulting in approximately 200-300 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, per annum. Norway’s CO2 sequestration potential of 70 Gt CO2 in the North Sea is far beyond its direct production of 42 million tonnes CO2 per annum. Germany will have to sequester CO2 production of 200-300 million tonnes of CO2 per annum, which is difficult to replace by renewables. Present legislation prohibits CO2 sequestration but allows CO2 transport and export. This complementary interest can refer to the successful coordination in the 1980s and 1990s of building a large gas export infrastructure on the Norwegian shelf, with a corresponding infrastructure upgrade for marketing the new Norwegian gas volumes.
