The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) said it has reached a final investment decision to set up one of the MENA region’s largest carbon capture projects, according to a statement. The pioneering Habshan carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) project will have a capacity to capture and permanently store 1.5 mn tons per annum (mtpa) of CO2 within geological formations underground. No financial details or a timeline for the project were disclosed.

What we know: The project will triple Adnoc’s carbon capture capacity to 2.3 mtpa, which is equivalent to the removal of more than 500k gasoline-powered vehicles from the road annually. It will be built, operated, and maintained by Adnoc’s gas unit, Adnoc Gas, and will include carbon capture units at the Habshan gas processing plant, pipeline infrastructure, and a well network for CO2 injection. The CO2 will be permanently stored in reservoirs deep in the sub-surface through the deployment of closed-loop CO2 capture and reinjection technology at the well site.

REMEMBER- Adnoc recently revised its net zero plan, targeting net zero in 2045 instead of 2050. It also plans to achieve zero methane emissions by 2030. Earlier this year, it allocated USD 15 bn to advance and accelerate low-carbon solutions, new energy investments, and decarbonization technologies to help achieve its net zero goals.

Been there, done that: Adnoc opened in 2016 its first carbon capture, transportation, and storage facility at Abu Dhabi’s Al Reyadah, according to the statement. The project has the capacity to process up to 800k tons of CO2 per year captured at Emirates Steel Arkan. The facility can give room for an oil recovery enhancement of low carbon-intensity barrels and the production of low-carbon feedstocks such as hydrogen to help customers decarbonize their operations, the statement said.

It’s been an eventful couple of months: Adnoc signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Occidental Petroleum to explore potential investments in carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) hubs in the UAE and US last month. Under the agreement, Adnoc and Occidental will evaluate the development of direct air capture (DAC) facilities in the UAE — including what could be the first megaton DAC project outside of the US — to potentially absorb as much as 1 mn tons of carbon dioxide annually. The two parties will also evaluate the joint development of one or more carbon management hubs in the Gulf country.

And it isn’t just Adnoc: Emirati utility company Etihad Water and Electricity said earlier this week that it is joining efforts with the UAE’s state-owned renewables company Masdar to upscale its CCUS capabilities. State-owned Sharjah National Oil Corporation signed an initial agreement with Japanese trading and investment company Sumitomo Corporation in late July to establish a CCUS project in Sharjah. Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Energy and Indonesian state-owned energy company Pertamina also signed an MoU in July to explore avenues in CCUS projects in Indonesia. Saudi Arabia’s oil giant Aramco and Norway-based Aker Carbon Capture also signed an agreement in July to explore partnerships to employ CCUS and industrial modularization in the kingdom.