Global experts gathered in Stavanger for CCUS Conference Norway

The first-ever international CCUS Conference Norway was held in Stavanger June 11th - 13th, bringing together a global community of industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators discussing how we turn Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) from potential into reality.

The timing was symbolic: just days after, Northern Lights marked a historic milestone by shipping the first cargo of liquefied CO₂ from Brevik to Øygarden with Europe’s first open, commercial CO₂ transport and storage value chain officially underway.

With Northern Lights hitting such a milestone, Benedicte Staalesen, the company's Director of Communication and PPA, was a natural choice to moderate.

Hosted by Energy Transition Norway (ETN), ONS, Stavanger Business Region, and the Stavanger Chamber of Commerce, the conference showcased Norway's leading role in shaping CCUS deployment across Europe and beyond. Welcoming words were by ETN Chairman Tor Arnesen.

The event confirmed that CCS is critical for decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors like cement, steel, and heavy energy. But while the technology exists, the challenge is scaling and de-risking the value chain.

Focused on bridging industrial ambition with climate responsibility, the opening session highlighting the urgent need for value chain coordination, derisking, bold investments, and strategic policy frameworks to scale CCUS.

Key themes and insights included:

CCS is no longer a vision - it’s becoming a reality. Eadbhard Pernot (Secretary General at the EU Zero Emission Platform) presented an overview over current industry developments across Europe, while an expert panel of speakers from Shell, Aramis CCS, Northern Lights and Equinor discussed their companies perspectives approaches to CCS.

"We can't expect oil & gas returns - CCS is about waste management." Speakers like Jeremiah Lim (Director, Head of Carbon and Sustainable Fuels at Barclays Investment Bank) and Cristel Lambton (Project Manager CCS at Equinor) reminded us that CCS is about infrastructure. It's a low-margin business model that requires public-private collaboration and new ways of structuring risk and reward. Still - we're going to handle billions of tons of CO2, so those who manage to develop services for the value chain will tap into significant value creation.

Utilization: It's not just "waste" - it can be turned into value. Another group of speakers advocated for the U in CCUS - a dedicated session thus explored CO₂ as a feedstock for new products and materials, positioning utilization as a circular economy driver. Speakers from CarbonCure, Hy2gen and SEID called for policy frameworks that support both storage and value-added uses of captured CO₂.

Scale and diversity must go hand-in-hand. The conference addressed how both large industrial emitters and small-scale clusters can plug into shared infrastructure. Aligning logistics, technology, and business models across different scales was seen as key to accelerating deployment, with presentations from both international gas transmission operating systems and Norwegian companies.

Digital tools and modular capture technologies are accelerating progress, as showcased by Capsol Technologies, SLB Capturi and ABB. Digitalization efforts ranging from AI to automation was presented as a vital enabler in improving capture efficiency and reducing costs. Flexible and modular systems are opening doors for smaller emitters to join the CCUS ecosystem.

First movers share both risk and a potential competitive edge. Energy and industry players like Holcim, Harbour Energy, and GreenCap Solutions shared first hand experiences of going early with capture and storage investments. Courage is necessary, and the long-term payoff may come not just in profits, but in strategic positioning and resilience.

Global momentum is building, and Norway must be careful to keep up. Although CCS deployment has been slower than anticipated, the momentum is now unmistakable. As Lucy King (Wood Mackenzie) and Edbhard Pernot (Zero Emission Platform) noted, over 200 projects have already reached final investment decision globally, with 400 more expected by 2030. “CCS was dead in Germany just three years ago - look at it now,” Pernot remarked. “Norway must move fast or risk falling behind.”

With strong partnerships, bold policy, and market innovation, the CCUS Conference Norway 2025 showed that CCS is no longer just a climate option, it’s a climate imperative. The foundation is laid. Now it’s time to connect the dots and collaborate across the value chain.

The next steps? Continue the conversation at ONS 2026, and return to Stavanger for the second edition of CCUS Conference Norway in 2027.