– by Hanh Le
As countries who are signatories to the Paris Agreement submit revised Nationally Determined Contributions, we can expect to see changes to planned pathways to net zero.
Decarbonising hard-to-abate industries remains highly challenging and major economies in Asia will be looking closely at the levers available to achieve both climate and energy goals.
All options need to be on the table, with carbon capture and storage (CCS) high among them. Both the International Energy Agency and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have said CCS must be scaled up enormously to reach net zero.
I recently had the opportunity to visit the world-class Moomba Carbon Capture and Storage project in the South Australian desert. Beyond reducing domestic industrial emissions, Moomba serves as a pointer towards the regional potential of CCS as a proven technology that can deliver mitigation outcomes at the scale needed to achieve NDCs and net zero. Â International involvement in CCS projects is essential to bring scale and reduce the cost of storage for domestic emitters.
Developed and operated by Asia Natural Gas and Energy Association (ANGEA) member company Santos in a joint venture with Beach Energy, Moomba is a great counter to critics who say CCS doesn’t work.
Moomba is a concrete example of why CCS is an essential greenhouse gas emissions abatement solution that can offer decarbonisation at scale. Since it entered operation in late 2024, the facility has already stored more than 1 million tonnes of CO2 from the neighbouring Moomba Gas Plant – operating just as designed. With annual storage capacity of 1.7 million tonnes per annum, it’s the equivalent of removing 700,000 petrol vehicles from the road annually.
Touring the Moomba CCS project in outback South Australia
Early investment to kickstart a new industry
Over the next 30 years we can expect to see many more facilities like Moomba built – not only in Australia but in countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.
These facilities will be part of cross-border CO2 value chains that would maximise the contribution of CCS to decarbonisation in Asia Pacific and underpin regional cooperation on climate goals. Early investment in infrastructure would kickstart an industry that could quickly be worth hundreds of billions of dollars a year.
Unlike North America and Europe, the largest source of emissions in our region are distant from the largest storage sites. Major industrial economies like Japan, South Korea and Singapore have the ability to capture their emissions from their hard-to-abate industries, but not the geological capacity to store them.
Meanwhile, countries such as Australia, Indonesia and Malaysia possess ample storage space and have signalled interest in providing CO2 storage services.
Prospective storage and receiving nations in Asia Pacific are already progressing a range of cross-border CCS initiatives. Malaysia and Indonesia have signed MOUs and collaboration agreements with Singapore, Japan and Korea on cross-border CCS projects, while Australia’s decarbonisation partnerships with those three countries also reference CCS.
While these pointers are welcome news, progress remains slow.
Bringing policy up to speed with technology
Advancement of cross-border CCS in the region will depend on the ability of the policy and regulatory landscape to catch up with technology. With countries treating aspects of CO2 transactions differently and no whole-of-region regulations or standards, how do we ensure cross-border CCS can be scaled up quickly enough to have a real impact in the next few decades?
It’s a pivotal question, one ANGEA has spoken about regularly over the past few months – at major conferences in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Australia and at an International Energy Agency workshop in Paris.
This question has also driven a groundbreaking collaboration between ANGEA and BCG to build understanding and fluency in key issues that need to be addressed in bilateral cross-border CCS agreements in Asia.
The Accelerating cross-border CCS in Asia Pacific study provides a first-of-its kind framework for governments to draw upon in bilateral discussions about cross-border CCS. This framework outlines options to ensure avoidance of double– counting of emissions reductions, accountability for liabilities of leaked emissions, and adoption of best practice in the operationalisation of projects, including transport, injection and monitoring of CO2.
Importantly, our report seeks to guide, rather than prescribe, and presents flexible options that acknowledge the need for cross-border CCS agreements to fit with the individual circumstances and needs of the countries involved.
Unlocking the full potential of CCS
The possibilities for cross-border CCS in Asia Pacific are enormous.
It’s estimated the APAC region could be storing up to 3 gigatonnes of CO2 per annum by 2050, enabling decarbonisation in hard-to-abate industries. Meanwhile, BCG research has indicated CCS in Asia Pacific could support as many as 300,000 jobs and add up to $US220 billion in GDP annually as soon as 2035.
Economic opportunities resulting from cross-border CCS – including job creation, technology transfers and early investment – will be especially noteworthy for storage nations. With emissions targets getting more ambitious, cross-border CCS becomes more critical in the mitigation toolkit and the need for bilateral agreements more urgent. Countries with the right policy settings and a desire to capture this opportunity will gain an advantage.
Critically, however, the ability for cross border CCS project to access finance schemes and carbon credits is essential to improve bankability.
Greater policy, regulatory and legal clarity will be required to support the significant public and private investment needed to develop and scale up CCS projects. This clarity will only emerge with continued collaboration and consultation involving governments, industries and communities, and ongoing dialogue in key forums.
We believe our framework can help inform these conversations. It provides a resource that governments can consider when they sit down to negotiate bilateral agreements that will be a vital first step to turning the promise of cross-border CCS into reality.
Projects like Moomba and Chevron’s Gorgon – which has stored 11 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent since 2019 – show that CCS works. The critical task now at hand is to create a policy and regulatory environment that can unlock the full potential of transboundary CO2 transactions in Asia Pacific.
ANGEA and its member companies are committed to supporting governments and working with stakeholders throughout the region to ensure this happens.
Hanh Le is the Cross-Border CCS Advisor for the Asia Natural Gas & Energy Association, which works with governments, industries and communities in Asia, providing affordable solutions that promote energy security, economic growth and decarbonisation.
