The Danish Energy Agency has awarded INEOS and its partners, Wintershall Dea and Nordsøfonden an exploration licence for onshore CO2 storage in the Gassum formation in Jutland, Denmark. Wintershall Dea will act as the operator for the licence.

The Danish subsurface has significant potential for CO2-storage. According to analysis by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS, there is capacity to store between 12 and 22 billion tonnes of CO2 in the Danish subsurface, equivalent to 400 to 700 times Denmark`s annual CO2 emissions.

GEUS has identified significant potential for safe CO2 storage within the Gassum license. The partners in the Gassum license will now start the exploration process towards potential permanent storage of Danish and European CO2 in the Gassum formation. Experience gained from the INEOS-led Project Greensand and its pilot phase will be utilized in this endeavour, with investigations conducted in close dialogue with national and local authorities in Denmark.

David Bucknall, CEO INEOS Energy said: "Establishing offshore and onshore sites for permanent storage of CO₂ will be crucial for the EU to meet its climate goals and to support a robust market for carbon capture and storage. The Gassum onshore license aligns perfectly with INEOS Energy's strategy: Delivering energy during the green transition and being a frontrunner in carbon capture and storage”.

Mads Weng Gade, Head of INEOS Energy DK said: “INEOS has been a frontrunner demonstrating safe and efficient storage in the pilot phase of Project Greensand last year, and we have the ambition to establish the first CO₂ storage within the EU in Greensand by 2025/26. The potential for safe storage in Gassum is high, but we now need to conduct the necessary studies utilizing the important learnings from Greensand to demonstrate safe and efficient storage in Gassum as well. This will of course happen in close collaboration with both national and local authorities”.