Commission adopts its first Opinion on a draft permit for the permanent storage of CO2

Under the Directive on the geological storage of CO2 (so-called "CCS Directive"), the Commission may provide a non-binding Opinion on a national draft storage permit - submitted by a Member State - within four months of its receipt. On 28 February 2012 the Commission adopted its first such Opinion on the draft permit for the permanent storage of CO2 offshore on the Dutch continental shelf.

As a first step, storage is expected to take place within the framework of the Rotterdam Capture and Storage Demonstration (ROAD) project located in the port of Rotterdam, which was awarded EUR 180 million of funding under the European Energy Programme for Recovery (EEPR). The CO2 from the capture installation would then be transported by pipeline to an offshore platform for permanent storage, where the CO2 would be injected into the storage site at a depth of over 3 km.

Read more:

• Commission Opinion relating to the draft permit for the permanent storage of carbon dioxide in block section P18-4 of block section P18a of the Dutch continental shelf (28 February 2012)
• Carbon Capture and Geological Storage
• Implementation of the CCS Directive
• Statement by Connie Hedegaard: "Stringent safety standards for carbon capture and storage will promote investor confidence for commercial-scale projects"