The funding has been approved under EU state aid rules.
The project aims to capture greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the companies’ existing plants in Antwerp which produce hydrogen, ammonia and ethylene oxide, and serve as a regional hub for energy and carbon value chains.
CO2 will be capture from various industrial sources on the Zandvliet industrial platform, transported by a local pipeline within the port of Antwerp to the liquefaction and export terminal in the same port, and then shipped to a permanent underground storage site in the North Sea.
Initially it will focus on the more concentrated CO2 emissions in the process streams, such as those generated as a byproduct in a chemical process (ammonia and ethylene oxide) for which no alternative or cost-effective low-carbon technology is available.
The second element involves the use of an energy efficient liquefaction plant at a scale not realised before, ‘around 10 times’ the capacity of the largest CO2 liquefaction unit in operation today. The third part will see the development of liquid CO2 vessels.
The project aims to create an integrated, cross-border CCS value chain at industrial scale, which will result in around 20 million tonnes of net GHG emissions avoided, over 15 years.
The measure will contribute to Belgium’s climate targets by decarbonising the industry through an integrated cross-border CCS value chain, in line with the objectives of the Clean Industrial Deal.
Kairos@C was one of the first large-scale projects under the Innovation Fund call of 2020 and was awarded a grant of over €365m. However due to high inflation since, project costs have significantly increased and it could not start without additional aid. It is unclear when the project aims to complete, as the original first-phase target was 2025.
The measure will be financed through the budget of the Flemish region. The aid will take the form of a direct investment grant of €30m per beneficiary, which will be complemented by an additional grant that will be paid out in ten annual instalments of €10m per beneficiary, provided that minimum GHG emission reductions are achieved.
Last month Air Liquide signed an agreement with building materials company Holcim to develop a carbon capture solution for a near-zero emission cement plant at Obourg, Belgium.