An MoU between JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corporation and Chevron New Energies has been signed. This agreement will involve the companies collaborating over a project focused on evaluating the potential for transporting carbon dioxide from Japan.

The reason for this MoU and this collaboration, is to decide whether it would be possible to create a carbon capture and storage value chain. This chain would take into account the capture of any Co2 that is emitted from industries that are based within Japan and this would include JX’s affiliates. If the creation of this chain is possible, the capture Co2 would then be transported, by ship, from Japan to Chevron’s greenhouse gas storage portfolio. This storage space is located in Australia.

Alongside this evaluation, the MoU also states that the companies will research and explore the ability to develop transboundary policies. The team will also focus on the possibility of developing Co2 storage sites in countries within the Asia Pacific region.

Vice President of Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) at Chevron Chris Powers, commented, “We look forward to building off our long-standing relationship with JX and ENEOS Group, the largest Japanese global petroleum and metals conglomerate, and hope that this joint study ultimately contributes to the further development of large-scale CCS hubs throughout the Asia Pacific region. We believe large-scale CCS value chain projects will play a key role in advancing Asia Pacific’s lower carbon aspirations, and that long-term collaborations are necessary to meet these aspirations.”

Executive Vice President of JX, Tetsuo Yamada, mentioned, “This MoU is achieved thanks to the significant oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) relationship with Chevron that we have had over seven decades, and further demonstrates the commitment and dedication of the companies in helping advance lower carbon solutions. JX has positioned CCS as an important initiative in its business strategy under its “Two-Pronged” approach, in which, in addition to the conventional oil and natural gas development business, decarbonization initiatives centred on CCS/CCUS are another prong of the company's operations such as the Petra Nova CCUS project in Texas, USA. JX will contribute to the realization of a carbon-neutral society by leveraging the knowledge we have accumulated through our various CCS/CCUS-related businesses.”