Santos Ltd. has signed agreements with two Japanese energy companies to collaborate on carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects.
The news follows passage of legislation through the Australian parliament to facilitate the cross-border transfer of CO2.
A memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed between Santos, JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corp. (JX), and ENEOS Corp. (ENEOS) for a joint feasibility study to evaluate the establishment of an entire CCS value chain, including the capture of CO2 emitted from the ENEOS refinery and nearby industries in Japan, transportation by ship from Japan to Australia, and injection at the Moomba CCS site in South Australia.
The collaboration also includes an assessment of potential implementation of direct air carbon capture and storage and production of synthetic fuels utilizing the Moomba CCS site.
The MOU seeks to jointly identify and define commercial and investment opportunities covering the potential importation of up to 5 million tonnes/year (tpy) of CO2 by 2030, 10 million tpy by 2035, and 20 million tpy by 2040 from Japan to the Moomba CCS project, via either Port Bonython in South Australia or Gladstone in Queensland.
The Moomba CCS project could safely and permanently store up to 1.7 million tpy of CO2 in depleted Cooper basin reservoirs (OGJ Online, Nov. 2, 2021). The first phase of the project is 75% complete with first injection on track for 2024.
