Woodside, BP and MIMI to explore CCS project in WA

Woodside, BP, and Japan Australia LNG (MIMI), which is owned equally by Mitsubishi and Mitsui, have agreed to form a consortium to progress feasibility studies for a large-scale, multi-user carbon capture and storage (CCS) project near Karratha in Western Australia.

Woodside said that the consortium brought together the diverse capabilities of these three companies to assess the technical, regulatory, and commercial feasibility of capturing carbon emitted by multiple industries located near Karratha on the Burrup Peninsula and storing it in offshore reservoirs in the Northern Carnarvon Basin.

According to the company, the study represents an important step towards the development of one of Australia’s first multi-user CCS projects, ideally located to aggregate emissions from various existing sources.

It would also help facilitate the development of new lower-carbon industries, such as the production of hydrogen and ammonia, by providing a local solution for emissions.

The successful deployment of CCS in Western Australia has the potential to create new jobs, protect current jobs and contribute to achieving greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets at a lower cost than many other technologies.

Woodside CEO Meg O’Neill said the project was an exciting opportunity to explore another technology-driven solution to reducing emissions.

“Carbon capture and storage will play a key role in Australia meeting its emissions targets and has the potential to decarbonize existing and new industry. It would be an important addition to Woodside’s carbon management options as we work towards our own aspiration of net-zero by 2050,” she said.

Louise Jacobsen Plutt, BP senior vice president for hydrogen and CCUS, added “with our deep expertise and experience in CCS, this is a great opportunity for bp to explore with our longstanding joint venture partners the decarbonisation of hard-to-abate industrial sectors in the northwest, and Australia more widely, through the technology”.

“MIMI is excited to work with our consortium partners in looking at technology to help manage and reduce CO2 emissions,” said MIMI managing director and chief executive officer Hiroyuki Kurahashi.”

This Northern Carnarvon basin is one of Australia’s offshore provinces which along with the Browse, Roebuck, Offshore Canning, and Bonaparte basins form the so-called North West Shelf.

Woodside is the operator of the North West Shelf project with 16.67 per cent interest. The project has five more partners – BHP, BP, Chevron, Shell, Woodside Petroleum, and MIMI – each holding an equal 16.67 per cent working interest.

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