Aker Solutions and Microsoft have signed an agreement aimed at accelerating the development and delivery of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) projects worldwide, as developers face mounting pressure to turn climate ambitions into investable projects.
The partnership will focus on improving project maturity, bankability and execution, with Aker Solutions working alongside developers, emitters, transport and storage providers, industry stakeholders and governments to help reduce execution risk and strengthen investment readiness.
The companies will also explore opportunities around CDR credits as projects move closer to final investment decisions (FID).
The collaboration brings together Microsoft's expertise in digital technologies, data, artificial intelligence (AI), monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV), and carbon markets with Aker Solutions' techno-economic advisory expertise and end-to-end engineering, procurement and construction capabilities.
As selected projects advance towards FID, the companies plan to provide integrated engineering and execution support, giving developers a pathway from early-stage feasibility through to operations.
“Many carbon capture and removal projects face similar challenges as they move from concept to reality. As the market matures, success will depend on strong collaboration across the value chain. Joining forces with Microsoft, we aim to help project developers navigate complexity, strengthen business cases, and support the next wave of CCS and CDR projects,” says Kjetel Digre, CEO at Aker Solutions.
Microsoft has committed to becoming carbon negative by 2030 and removing its historical emissions by 2050. The technology giant has sought to help build the market for durable carbon dioxide removal through long-term purchasing agreements and by sharing its experience and learnings.
“Microsoft supports collaborations that look holistically across the entire value chain, connecting physical infrastructure with trusted data, AI and digital MRV to help projects reduce risk, and move from ambition to execution. We are working with Aker Solutions to bring these complementary capabilities together and help accelerate credible CCS and carbon removal projects globally,” says Darryl Willis, corporate vice president, energy and resources at Microsoft.
The agreement was signed at ONS in Stavanger, Norway, bringing together two major players from the energy and technology sectors in an effort to push CCS and carbon removal projects closer to commercial reality.
