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.