Dutch Council of State gives Porthos the green light

The Dutch Council of State, the highest administrative court in the Netherlands, today rejected an objection from the environmental organization MOB against the environmental permits of the CO₂ storage project Porthos. This means that Porthos can proceed with preparing and executing its plans to build the infrastructure for CO₂ storage under the Dutch section of the North Sea. Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN) is pleased with this ruling. The next step is for EBN and the other project partners to take the necessary Final Investment Decision. Construction is expected to start in early 2024.

Porthos is essential step towards CO₂-storage

Berte Simons (Business Unit Director CO₂ Transport and Storage Systems – EBN) said: “As initiator of the Porthos project, and as a public organization serving the energy transition, we welcome that Porthos has been given the green light by the Council of State. Porthos is an essential project for the Netherlands to realize CO₂ storage under the North Sea. Today’s ruling is an important boost for the realization of the energy transition, the necessary energy infrastructure and thus for achieving the climate goals.”

Porthos contributes to climate goals

Porthos is a joint venture between EBN, Gasunie and Port of Rotterdam Authority. Porthos will store under the North Sea seabed approximately 2.5 Mton of CO₂ per year from Rotterdam based companies Air Liquide, Air Products, ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell for fifteen years. That is 10 percent of Rotterdam industry’s emissions. Porthos thus makes a significant contribution to the Dutch climate goals.

An overview of the Porthos project. (Click to enlarge).