KN Energies, Akmenės cementas, SCHWENK Latvija, Larvik Shipping, and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines have teamed up to form the CCS Baltic Consortium to develop Lithuania's first full carbon capture and storage (CCS) value chain.

The establishment follows the country's only cement producer's goal of becoming climate-neutral from 2035. As such, Akmenės cementas will invest up to €600 million in CCS.

"This year, [Sweco Lietuva and] we will carry out the environmental impact assessment and the front-end engineering design studies for the CO₂ terminal in Klaipėda - key steps towards the final investment decision. This would be the first infrastructure of its kind in the Baltic States, opening the door to broader industrial decarbonisation in the region," highlighted Rūta Tumėnienė, Head of New Energies at KN Energies.

The CO₂ captured by Akmenės cementas will be liquefied for shipping out of KN Energies' liquid energy products terminal in the Port of Klaipėda for storage underneath the North Sea.

Tumėnienė also commented, "CCS technologies not only enable a significant reduction in CO₂ emissions but also create conditions for sustainable industrial operations and development and the use of cleaner energy. The CCS value chain infrastructure will also help develop biogenic CO₂ capture and the synthetic fuels production sector in Lithuania. At the same time, this is an important tool in the fight against climate change, which affects everyone of us."

In 2024, the European Commission granted the CCS Baltic Consortium Project of Common Interest status, which was renewed last year. The project is co-funded under the energy envelope of the EU Connecting Europe Facility.

Photo: KN Energies