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Construction of the Porthos CCS [Carbon Capture & Storage] project in the port area of Rotterdam is well underway.
It is the first CO2 transport and storage project of this scale in the European Union to be realised. Porthos is the start of much more, it’s laying the foundations for future CCS projects in north-west Europe…
…Porthos is building an infrastructure to transport CO2 from industry in the port of Rotterdam to depleted gas fields under the North Sea. Porthos customers Shell, ExxonMobil, Air Liquide and Air Products will supply CO2 to an open-access pipeline running through the Rotterdam port area. The CO2 will be transported via an offshore pipeline to an existing platform in the North Sea, approximately 20 kilometres off the coast. From this platform, the CO2 will be pumped into depleted gas fields. The depleted gas fields are located in a sealed reservoir of porous sandstone more than 3 kilometres beneath the North Sea.
Porthos has been recognised by the European Union as a project of common interest and has been awarded €102 million from the Connecting Europe Facility.
CO2 storage within the Porthos project can bridge the time needed for industry to switch from fossil fuels to low- or zero-carbon alternatives. The construction of the Porthos onshore open access pipeline marks the start of the development of a future CO2 network in Northwest Europe. While Porthos will transport 2.5 million tonnes per year, the onshore Porthos pipeline is ready for 10 million tonnes, so it can also supply CO2 to future projects like Aramis. The compressor station is also ready for expansion. It forms the heart of the future CO2 hub, to which also CO2next can be connected. This liquid CO2 terminal will be able to receive and deliver liquid CO2 by ship for customers not connected to a pipeline.
These projects in Rotterdam form the beginning of a CCS chain that can develop into an international CCS network with the Delta Rhine Corridor and other links. The development of Rotterdam as a CO2 hub contributes to the European CCS policy as set out in the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy (ICMS) and the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA). In combination with technologies such as Direct Air Capture (DAC) and Bioenergy CO2 Capture and Storage (BECCS), the network could contribute to reaching negative emissions in the future. CO2 is currently used in greenhouse horticulture and future demand is expected for CO2 as a feedstock, for the production of synthetic fuels and for closed-loop processes…
…The 30-kilometre collector pipeline through the Rotterdam port area is currently being constructed at various locations in the port. Construction of the Maasvlakte compressor station and cooling water pumping station will start later this month. Three compressors will work together to bring the CO2 to a maximum pressure of 130 bar for subsequent transfer to the offshore platform. Construction of the offshore pipeline and work on the platform will start in 2025.
Porthos is expected to be operational in 2026.
(For information about operations in the Netherlands, contact GAC Netherlands at [email protected])
Source: Extracts from Port of Rotterdam (www.portofrotterdam.com) news release dated 2 September 2024