UK Carbon Dioxide Appraisal and Storage Licensing Round

Motivation:

Goal7 was approached by multiple new and existing clients for the scoping, drafting and/or review of, non-competing, applications into the North Sea Transition Authority's (NSTA) first ever UK carbon dioxide appraisal and storage licensing round. The NSTA launched the round in response to unprecedented levels of interest from companies eager to enter the market with the areas on offer having a combination of attributes such as the right geological conditions, proximity to existing infrastructure which may be able to be re-purposed, and links to industrial clusters which are looking to carbon storage to help meet their decarbonisation goals. Goal7 brought its expertise from previous out-of-round applications and BEIS Cluster Sequencing to produce successful applications in different regions, with different geologies and with different envisioned value chains

Our Approach:

A collaborative approach was kicked off by Goal7 by running an initial screening exercise of potential offshore geological CO₂ storage sites by region of the UKCS from both public domain and client based data. Our resource allowed for a more thorough and wider screening to take place and identified targets by a methodical ranking. This resulted in the submission of nominations to the NSTA which unlocked the sites for application in the licensing round.

Upon announcement of the round Goal7 analysed the guidance documentation and scoring methodology to identify the key focus areas of the applications which included; geotechnical database and evaluation already performed; subsurface risk and hazard assessment; above-ground evaluation and project planning; and work programme. Goal7 took on a development and support role in addition to the development of key messages and drafting in specific sections. A significant focus of the above-ground evaluation was the full value chain assessment, economics and project risk assessment. Support continued in the form of self-assessment and preparation of materials for client internal approvals. This included the process of NSTA interview post-submission and project preparation once award was imminent.

Benefit and Impact:

• Multiple successful Carbon Dioxide Appraisal and Storage Licence awards in different regions of the UKCS
• Unlocked UK CCS for our client in a timescale concurrent with their decarbonisation ambitions
• Secured future work with the client for continuation on the development and support for PMO

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