A Nordic Alliance to Bury Carbon at Sea

A 15-year pact between Norway and Sweden boosts hopes for cross-border carbon storage in Europe

14 Apr 2025

Norway and Sweden have signed a long-term agreement to transport and store carbon dioxide across borders, marking a significant step in Europe’s decarbonisation strategy.

Under the 15-year deal announced in March, Stockholm Exergi will ship 900,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually to Norway’s Northern Lights project, where it will be injected beneath the seabed off the country’s west coast. The project, a joint venture between Equinor, Shell and TotalEnergies, is expanding its storage capacity from 1.5mn to 5mn tonnes a year by 2028 to meet rising demand.

The agreement is one of the largest of its kind in Europe and signals a shift towards scalable, cross-border carbon capture and storage (CCS) infrastructure. Northern Lights has received €131mn in EU funding through the Connecting Europe Facility and is building partnerships with companies in the Netherlands and Denmark, including Yara and Ørsted.

For Sweden, which lacks geological conditions suitable for underground storage, the partnership offers a long-term solution for industrial emissions. Stockholm Exergi operates a biomass-fired power plant and is developing one of Europe’s first large-scale bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) projects.

“This is a crucial turning point for Europe’s carbon management journey,” said Kristin Kragseth, head of low-carbon solutions at Equinor. “By linking storage infrastructure with dependable supply, we’re building the scale this industry demands.”

While the deal provides a model for regional cooperation, regulatory uncertainty and the complexity of maritime CO₂ transport remain key challenges. Industry executives say coordinated policy frameworks will be essential to scale CCS networks across Europe.

Northern Lights’ role as a potential hub for European carbon storage is gaining momentum, with growing commercial interest and public backing. The alliance with Sweden highlights how shared infrastructure could help nations meet climate targets where domestic options are limited.

As the EU moves towards net-zero emissions by 2050, the success of such partnerships may shape the future architecture of its carbon economy.