Saipem Secures Contracts for UK Carbon Capture Projects

Saipem SpA has secured the final award for the two projects Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP) and Net Zero Teesside Power (NZT) for the development of offshore facilities for the transportation and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the East Coast Cluster in the United Kingdom (UK).

The overall value of the two projects is approximately $682.76 million (EUR 650 million), with a duration of 30 months, Saipem said in a news release. The Italy-based construction company announced the signing of a letter of intent for the projects in March.

The first project was awarded by NEP’s entity called Net Zero North Sea Storage Limited, an incorporated joint venture between the operator BP plc, Equinor ASA, and TotalEnergies. The second project was awarded by Net Zero Teesside Power Limited, an incorporated joint venture between BP and Equinor.

The final award follows the completion of regulatory clearances and positive final investment decisions (FID) taken by the clients and the UK government, according to the release.

Saipem’s scope of work encompasses the engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) of 88.8 miles (143 kilometers) of offshore pipeline with associated landfalls and onshore outlet facilities for the NEP project, and the EPCI of the water outfall for the NZT project.

The offshore installation of the pipeline will be performed by Saipem’s flagship vessel Castorone, and the nearshore operations will be performed by Saipem's shallow water pipelay Castoro 10.

When completed, the projects will contribute to the realization of the first zero emission industrial hub in the Northeast of England and to the achievement of UK’s Net Zero targets with the transportation and storage of around 4 million metric tons of CO2 per year from 2028, Saipem stated.

A joint venture between BP plc and Equinor ASA, NZT Power aims to be one of the world’s first commercial-scale gas-fired power stations with carbon capture. NZT Power is expected to generate up to 860 megawatts of flexible, dispatchable low-carbon power equivalent to the average electricity requirements of around 1.3 million UK homes.

Waste-to-Energy Project in Italy

In October, a CO2 capture project by Saipem and utility company Hera Group was selected to receive funding under the fourth call for mid-scale projects from the EU Innovation Fund “for its high level of innovation, and its potential replicability in other waste-to-energy plants and other hard-to-abate industrial sectors in Italy,” Saipem said in an earlier news release.

Saipem's Bluenzyme technology will be applied to capture CO2 emissions at the waste-to-energy plant of the subsidiary Herambiente in Ferrara. It will be the first industrial-scale example of carbon capture and storage (CCS) applied to a waste-to-energy plant in Italy.

According to the release, the project will enable the capture of approximately 90 percent of the emissions from one of the plant's two lines, amounting to 64 thousand tons of CO2 per year. The captured CO2 will be transported via pipeline and stored in the depleted gas fields of the Adriatic.

Once the allocation is finalized, funding for the CO2 emission capture project will amount to nearly $25.21 million (EUR 24 million). The European funds will cover a significant portion of the $55.67 million (EUR 53 million) planned for the construction of the CO2 capture plant, Saipem stated.

Depending on opportunities arising from changes in the regulatory framework, the plant is expected to be operational by 2028, Saipem noted.

“The recognition from the EU Innovation Fund confirms the high level of innovation in Saipem’s Bluenzyme technology for the decarbonization of small and medium emitters in hard-to-abate sectors with a unique project for Italy and in Europe that strengthens our company's role in supporting its clients in their journey towards carbon neutrality,” Saipem CEO Alessandro Puliti said.

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