Greek industries can save EUR 6 billion through CO2 capture, storage

Carbon capture and storage or CCS has the potential to cut emissions costs for Greek companies by EUR 6 billion, according to a new study by the Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Co. (HEREMA) and KPMG.

During a special event, the management of HEREMA, or EDEYEP in Greek, noted that oil company Energean intends to create an underground storage site in the depleted hydrocarbons reserve of Prinos offshore Kavala which can hold 60 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. At a price of EUR 100 per ton of CO2 within the European Union’s Emissions Trading System – EU ETS, the sum lands at EUR 6 billion.

HEREMA: Industries can become more competitive

The project is included in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan Greece 2.0 for EUR 100 million in funding from the European Commission. According to HEREMA’s Chief Executive Officer Aristotelis Stefatos, big industries have already expressed interest in participating in the project, since they expect to become more competitive by reducing their carbon footprint.

HEREMA plans to study other potential sites for CO2 storage in Greece, such as in Grevena, Magnesia and in western part of Thessaloniki. It should be noted that annual CO2 emissions by large industries in Greece, such as refineries, cement producers, electricity and metal groups are estimated at 30 million tonnes.

How the process works

CO2 capture takes place in industrial installations, allowing them to avoid a part of their greenhouse gas emissions and send them to storage instead. It is a relatively recent technology, which is expected to mature and lower costs. According to the plan, a network of pipelines will transfer CO2 from the industries to the storage site.

The EU provides easy access to capital for such investments and factories can take advantage of it to improve their carbon footprint and become more competitive. With investments, companies will then need to buy fewer CO2 emissions rights (EUAs) required by EU regulations and save money.

The new framework by HEREMA will provide incentives for oil companies to use depleted underground deposits as CO2 storage space. At the same time, they have the right to sell their existing oil and gas licenses to companies interested in CO2 storage. Of note, several oil companies are not expected to carry on with their hydrocarbon exploration in various concessions in Greece. CO2 storage gives them the opportunity to capitalize on their progress so far.