EU supports Antwerp@C innovative CO2 reduction project by granting CEF funding

With this support, Antwerp@C reaches a new milestone and is strengthened in its ambition to reduce the CO₂ emissions within the port potentially by half between now and 2030.

Antwerp@C

Port of Antwerp brought seven leading chemical and energy companies together at the end of 2019 to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of building CO₂ infrastructure in the port of Antwerp. The consortium consists of Air Liquide, BASF, Borealis, ExxonMobil, INEOS, Fluxys, Port of Antwerp and Total. With the project entitled Antwerp@C the partners aim to keep CO₂ out of the atmosphere and as such to make a significant contribution towards the climate objectives, thanks to applications for capturing and utilizing or storing CO₂, all within a relatively short time span and at reasonable costs. The consortium is happy to announce that two applications for EU funding, submitted by Air Liquide, Fluxys, Total and Port of Antwerp to carry out studies for a liquid CO₂ Export Terminal, a CO₂ backbone within the Port of Antwerp and a CO₂ cross border pipeline to connect to the Netherlands, were approved. With this financial support, Antwerp@C reaches a new milestone and can engage one step further. The consortium is strengthened in its ambition to reduce the CO₂ emissions within the port (18.65 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions in 2017) potentially by half between now and 2030.

EU support: an important milestone

The partners of Antwerp@C are delighted that a Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) grant is awarded to the project to pursue detailed studies, since broad support – especially financial support – by the EU, the Belgian Federal Government and the Flemish Government is essential to ensure the success of the project. Antwerp@C is pursuing two pathways for cross-border CO₂ transport infrastructure, one for transport via an onshore pipeline to Rotterdam and one for transport by ship to North West Europe. Two subsidies for detailed studies – totaling an amount of c. €9 million - are now granted under the European funding program for Trans-European Energy Networks, CEF.

This CEF award is a positive step to support CCS as a CO₂ abatement technology for the industry in the Port of Antwerp. In addition to this first step, a number of expression of interest applications are currently being prepared by the consortium partners for submission under the European Innovation Fund that will be a key enabler to support the development of the entire CCS value chain from capture to storage.

Port of Antwerp, a carbon capture pioneer

Port of Antwerp is home to the largest integrated energy and chemicals cluster in Europe. This makes it the ideal location to set up new, cross-border collaboration projects for innovative CO₂ reduction. To this end, Air Liquide, BASF, Borealis, ExxonMobil, INEOS, Fluxys, Port of Antwerp and Total joined forces at the end of 2019 under the name of Antwerp@C, to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of building CO₂ infrastructure to support future CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation & Storage) applications. Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) and eventually also Carbon Capture & Utilisation (CCU) – i.e. reusing CO₂ as a raw material for the chemical industry – are seen as important routes in the transition to a carbon-neutral port. This innovative cross-border CCUS project would be among the first and world’s largest multimodal open access CO₂ export infrastructure.