The Northern Lights project is expanding its carbon capture and storage (CCS) capacity, with the big oil firms making their final investment worth around $714 million. This will help lower carbon emissions from industries in Europe.
The project will now store at least 5 million tonnes of CO₂ per year, up from 1.5 million tonnes. The decision comes after a deal with Stockholm Exergi, a Swedish energy company. The company will send up to 900,000 tonnes of CO₂ each year for 15 years.
A Bold Vision for European CCS
Equinor, Shell, and TotalEnergies are the companies behind the Northern Lights. Each of them has an equal share of 33.3%.
The European Commission also supports the project. It provided €131 million through the Connecting Europe Facility for Energy (CEF Energy) fund. The Norwegian government has played a key role in making the project possible.
Initiated as part of Norway’s Longship project, Northern Lights represents the world’s first cross-border, open-source CO₂ transport and storage service. Its primary objective is to provide industries across Europe with a reliable solution for capturing and securely storing CO₂ emissions beneath the North Sea seabed.
Phase one of the project became operational in September 2024, offering an annual storage capacity of up to 1.5 million tonnes of CO₂.
The project is key to Norway’s climate strategy. It helps industries cut emissions that are hard to reduce otherwise. Northern Lights also offers a cost-effective way for heavy industries to transport and store CO₂. This helps them meet stricter environmental rules.
Scaling Up: From 1.5M to 5M Tonnes of CO₂
In March 2025, the consortium announced a substantial investment of 7.5 billion Norwegian kroner (approximately $714 million) to fund the second phase of the project. This expansion aims to increase the storage capacity from 1.5 million to over 5 million tonnes of CO₂ per year by the latter half of 2028.
To facilitate this growth, the development will include additional onshore storage tanks, a new jetty, and more injection wells, leveraging existing infrastructure to expand operations efficiently.
The enhanced capacity will help accommodate a growing demand for carbon storage services from European industries seeking compliance with stricter emissions regulations and ambitious net-zero targets.
The first phase of Northern Lights is already finished. The project will begin operating in mid-2025. The first CO₂ shipment will come from a cement factory in Norway. This is part of Norway’s Longship CCS project.
The project is expected to be ready by late 2028.
A Step Toward a CCS Market in Europe
Leaders of the companies involved see this as a major step for CCS in Europe. Tim Heijn, Managing Director of Northern Lights, said the project will provide a real solution for cutting emissions. He believes it will help create a strong CCS market.
Anders Opedal, CEO of Equinor, said this project shows how governments and companies can work together. He added that CCS is key to reducing risks and attracting more customers.
Huibert Vigeveno from Shell said that CCS plays an important role in reaching net-zero emissions. He also noted that Northern Lights is part of Shell’s global CCS efforts. Nicolas Terraz from TotalEnergies agreed, saying the expansion will help industries in Europe cut emissions.
Anders Egelrud, CEO of Stockholm Exergi noted:
“I am very pleased that Northern Lights has decided to move forward with its project. This is a crucial step in our collaboration. Permanent carbon storage will play a key role in achieving the climate targets. Together, we are laying the foundation for what could become an entirely new industry – one with the potential to make the Nordics and Europe global leaders in this field.”
The expansion of the Northern Lights could substantially reduce Europe’s industrial CO₂ emissions. The project will boost storage capacity to over 5 million tonnes each year, which will tackle almost 10% of Norway’s annual emissions. It offers a scalable solution for industries looking to reduce their carbon footprint.
Stockholm Exergi Joins Northern Lights
As part of this expansion, Northern Lights has signed a deal with Stockholm Exergi. The company runs a biomass power plant in Stockholm. Their plan is to capture and store biogenic CO₂, which comes from burning organic materials. This process, known as Bio-Energy Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS), can create negative emissions. This means it removes more CO₂ from the air than it releases.
Anders Egelrud, CEO of Stockholm Exergi, said he is happy to see Northern Lights move forward. He believes permanent CO₂ storage will help meet climate goals. He also said this project could help Europe become a leader in CCS.
Per the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP Europe), the carbon storage injection capacity in the region could hit 200 million tonnes by 2038.
Aker Solutions Wins CCS Contract
Aker Solutions, a Norwegian engineering company, has won a contract for the expansion. The company will handle engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) for the onshore facilities. While the exact contract value is not disclosed, it is estimated to be between 1.5 billion and 2.5 billion NOK ($142–237 million).
Aker Solutions has worked on other CCS projects before. Henrik Inadomi, an executive at the company, said this is their fourth CCS project. He also noted that their past experience has helped lower costs. Work on this expansion will begin in the second half of 2025.
Why CCS Matters for Net-Zero Goals
Carbon capture and storage is important for reaching net-zero emissions. Many industries, like cement and steel production, produce a lot of CO₂. Some emissions are hard to eliminate using renewable energy alone. CCS provides a way to capture and store CO₂ instead of releasing it into the air.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) says CCS needs to capture about 1.6 billion tonnes of CO₂ per year by 2030 to meet global climate goals. Right now, the world only captures about 40 million tonnes per year. This shows there is still a long way to go.
CCS is especially useful for “hard-to-abate” sectors. These are industries where cutting emissions is very difficult. Northern Lights and other CCS projects are helping these industries reduce their carbon footprint.
Northern Lights is one of the first large-scale CCS projects in the world. Many experts see it as a model for future projects. If successful, it could inspire other CCS developments in Europe and beyond.
As governments and companies focus on cutting emissions, CCS will likely play a bigger role. Northern Lights’ expansion is an important step in that direction. It shows that with the right investments and partnerships, CCS can become a key tool in fighting climate change.
