Study Tour to Norway’s CCS Breakthrough Project: Top 5 Takeaways
There’s been a lot of buzz recently about carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a potentially viable technology for reducing emissions in heavy-industries, especially in cement production. To find out more, in late 2024, UNIDO’s Net Zero Partnership for Industrial Decarbonization (NZP) organized a study tour to Norway’s Longship CCS project, Europe’s first complete value chain for the capture, transport and storage of industrial CO2 emissions. Government participants from India and Kenya joined UNIDO experts to learn about the innovative technologies and strategies behind this breakthrough project.
They visited key project partners and sites. These included Heidelberg Materials’ CO2 capture facility—the first of its kind in the cement industry—and had discussions with the Northern Lights transport and storage company, which will move captured carbon to vast undersea holding facilities. They also met with officials from Gassnova, the state-entity coordinating the Longship CCS project, as well as Ministry of Energy representatives. We spoke with the NZP programme manager, Nurzat Myrsalieva, and Pal Sarbojit, programme manager for the Global Matchmaking Platform about the key tour takeaways.
1. CCS is possible and needed to reach net-zero cement production by 2050
Nurzat: “Before the trip, we were skeptical about CCS as the application of this technology within the cement industry is relatively new, seems costly and complex. We also had our doubts about its scalability, especially in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). But after the trip, we’re convinced that you need CCS to get heavy-emitting sectors to net zero.
In Norway, we saw how Heidelberg Materials (which is one of the two heavy-emitters participating in the project) had maximized efficiency, with 80 per cent of their fuel now coming from alternative sources. They’ve also optimized their use of raw materials and implemented energy efficiency measures. With these efforts, they were able to reduce their emissions by 30 per cent. But around 70 per cent of their emissions are still released during the clinker calcination step of the cement making process and they have no viable alternative for this chemical process at the moment.
In EMDEs, where new cement plants are being built, there’s a chance to introduce innovative processes instead of replicating current ones that are harder to decarbonize. And, there are alternatives emerging, such as replacing limestone and other carbonate-rich minerals with different materials to make clinker cement, but for the time being, these are limited. And, right now, with the cement industry accounting for 5–7 per cent of global CO2 emissions, until a viable alternative is found, CCS will be essential to reduce emissions.”
Sarbojit: “The plant we visited is due to capture about 400 kt of CO2 per year. Once they are fully operational (which was due to happen a week after our visit) cement from this plant will have the lowest emissions footprint in the world. But to reach this point has not been easy, and there’s a lot of learning–from retrofitting a 100-year-old cement plant with CC infra, to installing the largest amine-based carbon capture unit. A tremendous amount of innovation has happened over the last decades. And they are also very happy to share all this knowledge with anyone willing to know more.”
2. Long-term government support is crucial
Nurzat: “Carbon capture, transport and storage–all three are needed for CCS to work. We heard how initially in Norway, it was a ‘chicken and egg’ situation—who should start first? This is where long-term, bi-partisan government support was crucial. With the goal of meeting ambitious climate targets, the Government of Norway provided funding and policy support, including covering up to 75 per cent of the project costs for early movers. This financial backing, coupled with clear regulatory frameworks, incentivized private companies to invest in the project. Without the government’s leadership and stable political support over time, it would have been difficult to build the trust needed for private companies to commit to such a high-risk, long-term endeavor.”
3. Long-term planning and multi-sector engagement are key
Sarbojit: “To orchestrate this between multiple institutions and sections of the value chain, the Government of Norway established a public sector undertaking called Gassnova. It was valuable to learn from colleagues at Gassnova, as to how to (or how not to) organize such a complex value chain, layered with so many unknowns.”
Nurzat: “In addition to government and industry partners, research institutions were also instrumental in providing the scientific expertise needed for assessing storage capacities and developing the technology. For example, these institutions worked with stakeholders to map potential CO2 storage sites and assess the geological risks associated with long-term storage.”
Sarbojit: “Related to that, Gassnova oversaw the development and continued operations of the Technology Centre Mongstad (TCM), a 90 kt CO2 capture testing facility, and the hugely successful CLIMIT research and development programme, which has helped develop a large number of technologies that have actually gone into the Longship project. It’s this holistic, systems-approach that has made this Norwegian effort so special.”
4. If your country is starting from scratch, begin with raising awareness
Nurzat: “The Kenyan government representative raised an important concern: ‘for a country like ours, where we’re starting from scratch, how do we begin? We discussed this at length and ultimately concluded that the first priority should be raising awareness among key stakeholders. People need to understand the potential of CCS technology and how it works. It’s also important to understand your unique national context and what it will take to make the technology viable, so undertaking proper research is essential. For example, CCS storage is an important consideration that is country-specific. In Norway’s case, storage is offshore, but each country needs to thoroughly assess its own storage capacity. It’s a process that takes time, but awareness and research should be the starting points.”
5. CCS is a long-term undertaking that needs to be well thought through
Sarbojit: “I am not advocating that EMDEs invest in carbon capture right away. But noting domestic priorities, if a country does decide to go for it, I would tell them that it’s possible. And, I would say that this is a long-term solution that needs long-term planning and investment. For example, most countries don’t have that many high-emitters so it’s critical to understand your heavy industry sector and then target those that will actually benefit from CCS.”
Nurzat: “In Norway’s case, they produced a very useful ‘emitters map’. They marked all the heavy emitters, all the chemical plants, cement plants–the bigger the dot, the bigger the emitting source is. They also marked all the storage hotspots and existing transport routes. Having such a map is of huge value. In Norway’s case, also, they planned a cluster approach, where Northern Lights offers CO2 transport and storage as a service in the wider market, making the infrastructure economically viable over the long-term. The policy environment also needs to be carefully considered. Ultimately, this is a big investment and companies must be incentivized and, ideally, required to reduce emissions for the market to grow. In an ideal scenario, there are buyers for low-carbon commodities, like cement, but also strong policies pushing companies to lower their carbon footprints.
After this study tour, for us at NZP, our first goal will be raising awareness about CCS among our national partners. We will hold dedicated sessions on this and we will look at integrating it into our capacity-building programmes. From there, if a country is interested in CCS, we can help support the research and planning processes.”