Carbon Management:
Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Equinor and OGE

In the presence of the Federal Minister, Dr. Robert Habeck MdB, and the Norwegian Energy Minister, Terje Aasland, Dr. Jörg Bergmann, CEO of OGE, and Irene Rummelhoff, Executive Vice President at Equinor ASA, signed a letter of intent as part of the North Sea Dialogue.

With the signing of the letters of intent, both companies underline the ambition and the will to jointly drive carbon management solutions for the industry and its decarbonization efforts - OGE with its planned CO₂ transport network - and Equinor as a provider of CCS solutions.

Dr. Jörg Bergmann commented: "I would like to thank Federal Minister Habeck and Minister Aasland for attending the signing ceremony of Equinor and OGE. The presence of both ministers underlines the importance of building a CO₂ infra­structure.

To transform the energy system as a contribution to Net-Zero, we need pipeline-based carbon management solutions as quickly as possible in addition to the H₂ core network for supplying industry with hydrogen. We can only achieve this in Germany as a business and industrial location together with international partners, and Norway is an important part of the solution with regard to storage solutions.

In order to build a CO₂ network on the German side, we now need a rapid adap­tation of the corresponding legal framework for the transportation of CO₂ for the purpose of CCS/CCU. This includes the amendment of the Carbon Dioxide Storage and Transport Act, the recognition of CO₂ infrastructure as being in the overriding public interest and the ratification of the London Protocol for the international transport of CO₂. It is also important that the German government creates an attractive financial framework for the infrastructure so that investments are stimulated and triggered."

Norway and Germany have a long-standing partnership, which Equinor and OGE are building on with their collaboration on carbon management. The memo­randum of understanding signed today paves the way for further deepening this existing cooperation and thus being able to offer the industry decarbonization options as quickly as possible in the future.