ADNOC reports that the project which will see 100% of injected CO₂ captured and sequestered in Abu Dhabi’s carbonate saline aquifer will come onstream in 2Q2023. It forms part of the company’s $15bn multi-year action plan to decarbonise its operations and reduce carbon intensity by 25% by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050.

The project is expected to initially sequester a minimum of 18,000 t/y of CO₂ captured from Fertiglobe’s UAE operations. Fertiglobe is reported to be the world’s largest export-focused nitrogen fertiliser platform and the largest producer in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) with a combined production capacity of 6.5mn t/y of urea and merchant ammonia. ADNOC holds a 36.2% stake in the company.

The CO₂ injection well project builds on ADNOC’s experience with its Al Reyadah carbon capture facility, which has the capacity to capture up to 800,000 t/y of CO₂.

It is the latest in a series of decarbonisation initiatives from ADNOC, including an agreement for the company to acquire 100% of its grid power from the Emirates Water and Electricity Company’s (EWEC) nuclear and solar sources, reportedly the first time a major oil and gas company has decarbonised its power at scale though such a deal.

ADNOC also recently reached financial close on a $3.8bn agreement to build what is claimed to be a MENA first-of-its-kind subsea transmission network, connecting the company’s offshore operations to TAQA’s clean onshore power network which, once complete, could reduce offshore carbon intensity by up to 50%.

Turning CO₂ into rock
In related news, ADNOC has announced a partnership with the Fujairah Natural Resources Corporation (FNRC), Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) and 44.01 to pilot technology that permanently mineralises CO₂ within rock formations found in the Emirate of Fujairah.

The project will use 44.01’s Earthshot prize-winning carbon capture and mineralisation (CCM) technology to eliminate CO₂ from the atmosphere. It will be the first CCM project by an energy company in the Middle East, says ADNOC.

In the pilot, CO₂ will be captured from the air, dissolved in seawater and then injected into peridotite formations deep underground, where it will mineralise – ensuring that it cannot escape back into the atmosphere. Fujairah was selected for the project due to its abundance of peridotite, a form of rock that naturally reacts with CO₂ to mineralise it.

Talal Hasan, Founder and CEO of 44.01, comments: ‘Removing CO₂ from the atmosphere is vital if we are to halt and ultimately reverse climate change. Unlike CO₂ storage, mineralisation removes CO₂ permanently by turning it into rock, minimising the need for long-term monitoring and insurance. This pilot will enable us to test our technology at scale, on our way to offering a safe, cost-effective, natural solution for eliminating captured CO₂ internationally.’

The project will be powered by solar energy supplied by Masdar.

UAE’s first methanol facility
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Chemicals Derivatives Company (TA’ZIZ; an ADNOC and ADQ joint venture) and Proman, one of the world’s leading producers of methanol, have signed a shareholders agreement to develop what is claimed will be the UAE’s first world-scale methanol production facility. It will be located at the TA’ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone in Al Ruways Industrial City, Abu Dhabi.

The facility will have a capacity of up to 1.8mn t/y and meet growing domestic and international demand for what is seen as a clean and versatile chemical commodity. Methanol has a variety of uses, including in fuels, solvents, pharmaceuticals and construction materials and has growing potential as a lower-emission fuel, particularly in the maritime sector.