Call for expressions of interest for CO2 Dunkirk

The industrial port territory of Dunkirk alone accounts for nearly 20% of France’s industrial emissions and has equipped itself with a decarbonisation roadmap and an ecological transition plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. This objective is dependent, among other solutions, on the development of a CO₂ eco-system, i.e. the implementation of CO₂ capture, transport, storage and recovery chains, with innovative projects financially supported by Europe and the State, set to be rapidly rolled out in the coming years.

Supporting the emergence of industrial projects for CO₂ capture, storage and recovery, and speeding up industrial decarbonisation: this is the objective driving the CO₂ transport network project developed on the Dunkirk territory. Designed in concert with local institutional and industrial players, the transport network will make it possible to connect up the industrial sites that capture their CO₂ to CO₂ storage sites and future CO₂ recovery sites.

This infrastructure that will complement the project to develop a hydrogen network, launched in September 2022 by GRTgaz in the same industrial zone.

The new CO₂ transport network may be extended to other territories, in particular to link them with the hub set up in Dunkirk and local CO₂ development projects and infrastructures enabling CO₂ to be sent to geological storage sites in the North Sea and thus contribute to the attractiveness of a decarbonised industrial zone.

The Dunkirk Call for Expressions of Interest is a transparent, non-discriminatory process open to all market players.

It will take place in two phases:

• A first non-binding phase will make it possible to qualify needs. GRTgaz will then carry out a feasibility study in order to define the appropriate transport infrastructure and to draw up an initial budget.
• If this non-binding phase confirms the market’s interest, GRTgaz will define the conditions for accessing the structures and decision-making criteria for building them, working alongside the interested parties. Objective: to initiate the second -- and binding -- phase.

During the initial non-binding phase, stakeholders are asked to express their interest based on the elements described in the “Information Memorandum” that supplements the “Infrastructures Proposal” and the “CO₂ Specifications Proposal” which can be downloaded below.

>> Dunkirk CO₂ Information Memorandum

The CO₂ transport network infrastructure proposed by GRTgaz will cross the different sections of the port, to the west, at the level of the commune of Gravelines, will pass near the Atlantic basin and the green chemistry zone, following the technical corridors identified by the Grand Port Maritime de Dunkerque, then join the center and the east of the port to the site of a former refinery and to the LNG terminal.

This first proposal is indicative. Depending on the feedback from the actors of the territory, adaptations of this route may be considered.

>> Infrastructures Proposal

The CO₂ specifications were designed, first of all, to preserve the integrity of the transport structures in the face of the risks of chemical reaction and modification of the physical characteristics of their constituent materials and, secondly, to guarantee transport to other CO₂ transport infrastructures that comply with the final needs.

Any CO₂ flow introduced into the CO₂ transport grid as proposed in this call for tenders will thus need to comply with specifications in terms of:

• CO₂ quality (composition);
• Pressure and temperature conditions.

GRTgaz proposes using the initial specifications, on an indicative basis, which are summarised in the document available for download below.

>> Spécifications techniques CO₂

Do you have a capture, storage, CO₂ port terminal or CO₂ recovery project?  Are you interested in building the connection to the future CO₂ transmission infrastructure proposed for Dunkirk?

You have the opportunity to express your interest in the project. The expression of interest phase is open from 7 February 2023 until 31 March 2023. If the market responds positively to this stage, it will be followed by more technical sizing and plotting studies as well as definition studies until the end of 2024.

After filling out the online Expression of Interest form, and having signed a confidentiality agreement, you will be contacted by GRTgaz to set out your needs in detail.