Equinor has awarded Aker Solutions a contract to conduct a feasibility study to reduce CO₂ emissions at the Mongstad refinery in Norway.  

The study will explore the transformation of the Mongstad Industrial site in Vestland county on the Norwegian west coast into a low-carbon industry cluster. 

Mongstad refinery is a medium-sized facility in Europe and currently emits about 1.7 million tonnes of CO₂ annually. 

The scope of the project includes the development of a new facility to produce blue hydrogen from natural and refinery fuel gas, coupled with a carbon capture and export solution.  

Additionally, it involves creating a facility to manufacture sustainable aviation fuel from municipal solid waste, targeting more than 70% emission reductions.  

Aker Solutions' consultancy will integrate various technologies to assess future operations for both new and existing facilities. 

The feasibility study will make use of the engineers and consultants from Aker Solutions' operations in Mumbai, Oslo and Bergen. 

Their expertise spans onshore and downstream project execution, gasification, CO₂ storage, brownfield and integration. 

Aker Solutions senior vice-president of consultancy Roddy Macpherson said:  “We are excited to support Equinor on this truly transformational study, maximising industrial synergies to produce low-carbon solutions and sustainable fuels at a time when decarbonisation is very high on the agenda.  

“The Mongstad study will help to further accelerate Norway’s energy transition, transforming the country’s only remaining oil and gas refinery to create energy sources of the future.” 

In August 2023, Equinor acquired a 25% stake in Bayou Bend CCS, a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in the US from Carbonvert.  

Bayou Bend CCS boasts nearly 140,000 gross acres of pore space for permanent CO₂ sequestration and a gross storage capacity exceeding one billion metric tonnes.  

Chevron, with a 50% stake, operates the US CCS project, while Talos Energy holds the remaining 25% interest.