Norway’s Northern Lights turns CCS into reality
Page date: published 15 March 2023; updated 30 September 2026; 4 min read (as rendered).
The updated article describes Northern Lights as an operational, open-access CO₂ transport and storage service developed by Equinor, Shell and TotalEnergies and now run by Northern Lights JV. It says the first CO₂ was transported and injected in 2025. Liquefied CO₂ arrives by ship at the Øygarden terminal, is piped offshore and stored in geological formations about 2,600 metres below the seabed. The page presents the system as available to European industrial customers and says Denmark and the Netherlands were added from 2026.
Phase 1 capacity is stated as 1.5 million tonnes a year and fully subscribed. The Norwegian government approved Phase 2 in 2025, with at least 5 million tonnes per year planned by 2028. Customer agreements cited are Ørsted, for 430,000 tonnes of biogenic CO₂ annually; Yara, for 800,000 tonnes annually from its Sluiskil plant; and Stockholm Exergi, for up to 900,000 tonnes annually. These values, start dates and expansion plans are as reported on the page and may change.
The broader Longship CCS chain includes Heidelberg Materials’ Brevik cement capture facility, which the page says became operational in 2025, and Hafslund Celsio’s Oslo waste-to-energy project, described as under construction. The article presents CCS as a tool for hard-to-abate sectors alongside electrification and renewable energy. Its milestone list notes a 2020 injection well, 2024 delivery of Northern Pioneer and Northern Pathfinder transport ships, 2025 first injections and Phase 2 approval, and planned Phase 2 completion in 2028.
Related links: Energy; CCUS.