Gassnova: Future CCS Projects Could Be Less Expensive

The report “Potential for Cost Reductions in the CCS Value Chain” from Gassnova is based on valuable dialogue with industry stakeholders, and insights gained from the development of the Longship project. The overall analysis highlights how the CCS value chain could become both more affordable and more efficient in the future.

Longship as a Learning Arena

The Longship project demonstrates a full-scale value chain for carbon capture and storage,
and includes Brevik CCS, Northern Lights, and Oslo CCS. The report focuses specifically on Brevik CCS and Northern Lights, while Oslo CCS is not included in the analysis.

– The report covers technological, economic, and regulatory lessons from the project’s first phase. The goal has been to identify cost-reduction drivers across the entire value chain – from capture to storage – so that future projects can be carried out faster and more cost-effectively. We emphasize that technology development, tailored regulations, and appropriate industrial practices are key areas to achieve this, says Ingrid Sørum Melaaen, who led the Gassnova project team that authored the report.

Costs in Longship

The original cost estimate for Longship was NOK 25.1 billion (2021 value), including ten years of operations, with the Norwegian government as the main financial contributor. In the realized Longship project, roughly two-thirds of the investments went into CO₂ infrastructure.

– However, this picture changes under a hypothetical scale-up to 1.5 million tonnes of CO₂ per year across the full value chain. In such a scenario, the capture facilities and integration with emission sources would account for up to 65 percent of the costs. This is precisely where the greatest potential for improvement lies, says Sørum Melaaen.

Traffic Light Analysis Highlights Weak Points

A central element of the report is a so-called “traffic light analysis.” This evaluates technology readiness, supplier markets, customer competence, contract models, regulations, industrial practices, and scaling effects across the entire value chain: integration, capture, transport, receiving terminal, and storage. Capture, compression, and interim storage receive the most “red lights.”

Adjusting Regulation and Practice

The report further points out that current regulations are largely based on offshore standards. This has led to unnecessary costs for land-based facilities, partly because the requirements are not adapted to CO₂. Gassnova recommends that the regulatory framework be reviewed and adjusted to provide a more appropriate and cost-effective foundation. In addition, the report highlights that strengthening buyer competence and improving contract models, could result in substantial savings in future projects.

The Way Forward

Longship demonstrates that CCS is safe and technically feasible, but first-generation projects are challenging and expensive. – This report identifies where the greatest cost-saving potential lies in the CCS value chain. The next step is to translate this knowledge into tangible improvements for the future, concludes project manager Ingrid Sørum Melaaen of Gassnova.

“Potential for Cost Reductions in the CCS Value Chain” may be downloaded here.