The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) is launching the UK’s first-ever carbon storage licensing round with 13 areas of exciting potential available. 

The new carbon storage areas, alongside the six licences which have been issued previously, could have the ability to make a significant contribution towards the aim of storing 20-30 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) by 2030.

The areas being offered for licensing are off the coast of Aberdeen, Teesside, Liverpool, and Lincolnshire in the Southern North Sea, Central North Sea, Northern North Sea, and East Irish Sea and are made up of a mixture of saline aquifers and depleted oil and gas field storage opportunities. 

This round is envisaged to be the first of many as it is estimated that as many as 100 CO2 stores could be required in order to meet the net zero by 2050 target.

The NSTA has launched this carbon storage licensing round in response to unprecedented levels of interest from company’s eager to enter the market. The areas on offer have a combination of attributes such as the right geological conditions, proximity to existing infrastructure which may be able to be repurposed, and links to industrial clusters which are looking to carbon storage to help meet their decarbonisation goals. 

The level of interest already expressed suggests there will be strong competition meaning that prospective licensees will need to produce high-quality bids to win licences. 

The application window is open for 90 days, closing on 13 September, and will be evaluated by the NSTA on technical and financial criteria. 

Andy Samuel, Chief Executive, NSTA said, “This is an important day on the path to net zero emissions. In addition to the huge environmental benefits of significantly reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, the facilities will provide opportunities for many thousands of highly-skilled jobs. Carbon storage is going to be needed across the world. There is growing investor appetite and we are keen to accelerate development of the carbon storage sector so that the UK is well-positioned to be a global leader. The NSTA is ready to work with industry, government, regulators and others to deliver these exciting projects at pace.” 

It is expected that any new licences will be awarded in early 2023. The size and scale of the licensed stores mean that they are likely to proceed at different paces, but first injection of CO2 could come as early as four to six years after the licence award.