ADNOC, Petronas and Storegga have signed of a Joint Study and Development Agreement (JSDA) to evaluate the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions storage capabilities of saline aquifers in addition to the construction of carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities in the Penyu basin, offshore Peninsular, Malaysia.

The agreement is targeting at least 5 million tons per annum (mtpa) of CO2 capture and storage capacity by 2030. The JSDA’s activities are provisionally scheduled to begin later this year.

The scope of work includes a CO2 shipping and logistics study, geophysical and geomechanical modelling, reservoir simulation and containment research while exploring the application of advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), to enhance storage capacity.

“This agreement with ADNOC and Storegga will potentially allow us to build our capability to develop and de-risk saline aquifers as carbon dioxide storage sites by leveraging on our partners’ expertise and experience in other regions,” said Nora’in Md Salleh, CEO of Petronas CCS Solutions Sdn. Bhd. (PCCSS).

“This strategic partnership aligns with Petronas’ overarching goal of establishing Malaysia as a regional CCS hub to serve Asia Pacific, where it may build up the storage capacity through saline aquifers. This also demonstrates our earnestness in establishing the right pace to deliver CCS hubs here while also contributing to the national climate target,” Salleh added.

Notably, Petronas is a member of Malaysia’s National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) Committee, which has identified CCS as one of six energy transition levers to enable the country to be sustainable, low-carbon and resilient. The Malaysian Government is set to table a standalone CCUS bill by the end of 2024.

“Carbon capture is an important tool to responsibly reduce carbon emissions and ADNOC will continue to develop this technology as we work towards our Net Zero by 2045 goal. We are committed to working with trusted global partners like Petronas and Storegga to develop and utilize global carbon management hubs, enabling our customers to reduce their emissions and supporting their decarbonization goals,” said Hanan Balalaa, ADNOC Senior VP for New Energies.

ADNOC is targeting a carbon capture capacity of 10 mtpa by 2030, equivalent to those released by 2 million internal combustion vehicles.

For his part,Tim Stedman, CEO of Storegga, said: “This pioneering partnership is an opportunity to develop a world-class CCS hub and bring about large-scale industrial decarbonisation. Storegga’s experience from other leading CCS regions, plus the expertise of our partners, represent a combined intent to act now to tackle climate change.”