Yara
International ASA, Oslo, and French companies Air Liquide SA, Esso SAF, and
TotalEnergies, together with Vienna-based polyolefins and fertilizers major
Borealis AG, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to explore the
development of a CO2 infrastructure, including capture and storage, to help
decarbonize the industrial basin located in the Normandy region, France.
With
the objective to reduce CO2 emissions by up to 3 million mt per year by 2030,
which is equivalent to the emissions of more than 1 million passenger cars, the
first phase will consist of studying the technical and economical feasibility
of this project, Yara said in a July 12 statement, announcing the MOU.
The
partnership, which will seek funding from European, French, and regional
schemes, is open to other industrial parties.
“The
ability of industrial players to reduce their CO2 emissions in the medium and
long term is a decisive issue for the sustainability of industrial activities
and ecosystems in the area of Axe Seine/Normandy,” said Yara.
The
companies involved in the MOU have agreed to collaborate to assess the
technical and economical feasibility of implementing an industrial CO2capture
and storage (CCS) chain from their industrial facilities to ultimate storage in
the North Sea.
Yara Industrial
Solutions President Jorge Noval said the alliance will support Yara Industrial
Solutions’ journey to decarbonize production units and all of its value chains.
“Carbon
Capture and Storage is essential in achieving our mid-term ambition of a 30
percent reduction in absolute CO2emissions in 2030 compared to
2018, meaning a reduction of 200,000 mt of CO2emissions, equivalent
to 100,000 mt of blue ammonia at the Le Havre production plant,” he said.
Noval
said Yara will implement future technologies to reach carbon neutrality in 2050
in line with the Norwegian group’s ambition. The decarbonization of its site in
France will allow it to continue developing innovative applications for its
industrial customers, and, according to Noval, the impact on society will be “significant.”
Yara
Industrial Solutions is a global division of Yara International ASA.
Air
Liquide since 2015 has successfully implemented CryocapTM in its
plant in Port Jérôme, Normandy, an innovative proprietary CO2 capture and
liquefaction technology that allows the capture of up to 90 percent of CO2
emissions, according to the French company.
This
week’s announced initiative is in line with Air Liquide’s Climate Objectives,
which target carbon neutrality by 2050, it said.
Borealis
Fertilizer, Technical Nitrogen, and Melamine business COO Leo Alders said
Borealis’ strong interest in this project is in the first place driven by the
significant GHG reduction that can be achieved. At the same time, the project is
an innovative and collaborative approach across the leading regional
industries, creating new value chains, he said.
