Maersk Drilling has joined a new CO2 storage consortium formed by INEOS Oil & Gas Denmark and Wintershall Dea, the company said on June 16.

The consortium is maturing one of the most progressed carbon capture and storage projects inside Danish jurisdiction and targets the development of CO2 storage capacity offshore Denmark based on reusing discontinued offshore oil and gas fields for permanent CO2 storage.

The project has received support from the Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Program (EUDP) via the Danish Energy Agency. As part of its commitment to the consortium, Maersk Drilling has pledged to contribute know-how and limited funding to the initial phases of the project.

The project aims at building infrastructure and capabilities that will enable CO2 captured in onshore facilities to be transported offshore for injection and storage beneath the seabed. The first phase of the project will be a feasibility study to validate reservoir compatibility, followed by a pilot to test CO2 injection. The Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) will act as a research partner to the project, conducting specialised laboratory experiments and results analysis.

The target is to have the first well ready for injection from the Nini platform offshore Denmark in 2025. Longer-term, the goal is to develop the capacity to store approximately 3.5 million tons CO2 per year by 2030, matching the Danish Climate Council’s recommendations of actions needed to meet Denmark’s 70% reduction target. Maersk Drilling expects that its offshore rigs will be used to repurpose the existing oil and gas wells for CO2 injection.

“As the Danish government recently stated in its climate plan, carbon capture and storage is an important component in the efforts needed to reach the goal of reducing Denmark’s emissions by 70% by 2030. For Maersk Drilling, the project is part of our innovation initiatives and an attractive opportunity for building additional competencies and broadening the use of our rigs,” Jørn Madsen, Maersk Drilling CEO, said.

In addition to participating in the offshore carbon storage consortium, Maersk Drilling is working to reduce the emissions associated with offshore drilling in multiple ways. This includes the first-ever rig to operate onshore power and the upgrade of two jack-ups to hybrid, low-emission rigs.