ADNOC has announced a partnership with the Fujairah Natural Resources Corp (FNRC), Masdar and 44.01 to pilot technology that permanently mineralises CO2 within rock formations found in the Emirate of Fujairah.
The project, which is the first of its kind in the Middle East, is due to commence in January 2023, and 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.
Sophie Hildebrand, CTO at ADNOC, said in a press release “As the first energy company in the region to run a carbon-negative project of this kind, this pilot marks the latest step in our $15 billion investment into projects that will reduce our carbon footprint and help us achieve our Net Zero by 2050 ambition.”
Fujairah has been selected for this pilot due to its abundance of peridotite, a form of rock that naturally reacts with CO2 to mineralise it, ADNOC noted.
In this 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.”
The project will be powered by solar energy supplied by Masdar. A successful pilot would open the possibility of mineralising billions of tons of captured CO2 across the region.
