In late March 2025, a 149.5-metre vessel called the Carbon Destroyer arrived in the port of Esbjerg, Denmark. This summer, it will carry liquefied CO₂ offshore to the NINI West reservoir — the first time CO₂ will be commercially stored in the EU.

In this episode of What Goes Up Must Come Down, Simon spoke with Kurt Jager Lykke, Head of Business DK at INEOS Energy and head of Project Greensand. Kurt has led the commercial side of Greensand since its inception and took over as project head in 2024. Their conversation covers the project's origins, the organisations that made it possible, and what the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) sector can take from it.

TL;DR

• INEOS entered carbon capture and storage (CCS) by repurposing depleted North Sea fields, matching geological expertise with a new purpose
• CO₂ is sourced from Danish biomethane producers who already separate it as a standard step, lowering capture costs significantly
• The Carbon Destroyer will make 80 voyages per year, storing up to 400,000 tonnes CO₂ annually over eight years
• Project viability relied on a phased approach, an EU Innovation Fund grant, and risk shared across a three-party consortium
• Denmark faces a shortfall of roughly 10 million tonnes CO₂ to net zero — a measure of what still lies ahead
• The voluntary CDR market bridges the economics gap while carbon pricing cannot yet sustain the full CCS value chain

Why did INEOS invest in Project Greensand & how does it align with their overall strategy?

INEOS acquired the Danish oil and gas assets of the former DONG (now Ørsted) in 2017. By 2019, the fields in the SYRI fairway were nearing end of production life, and INEOS began asking whether existing expertise could be repurposed.

Injecting fluids into subsurface reservoirs, interpreting geological formations, moving large volumes — these are core oil and gas competencies, and CCS uses them in reverse. Decades of production data and seismic surveys gave the project a meaningful head start. INEOS also had its own emissions targets, making CCS investment strategically rational — though internal units must still compete on price. Greensand has to be the most competitive storage option available, not the in-house default.

The project story: the web of organisations involved and challenges along the way

Biogas is roughly 60% methane and 40% CO₂. Biomethane producers already separate that CO₂ to reach gas-grid quality as standard practice — the capture was already happening. What Greensand adds is liquefaction, transport, and permanent storage.

From Esbjerg, CO₂ is loaded onto the Carbon Destroyer and sailed to the NINI West reservoir. The ship carries 5,500 tonnes per voyage and is designed for 80 voyages a year — up to 400,000 tonnes CO₂ annually over eight years. The vessel did not exist when the project was conceived — INEOS and Dutch ship owner Wagenborg co-developed it from the design phase, both taking on risk beyond a standard supplier arrangement. The intermediate storage facility at Esbjerg — four 40-metre tanks of 1,000 cubic metres each — begins commissioning in June 2025. A pilot in 2022–23 had already confirmed that reusing existing offshore infrastructure was feasible.

Learnings from getting a project like this off the ground

Project Greensand’s story highlights the importance of public-private partnerships, managing risk, and prioritising feasible, physical results.

The decision to keep scope contained was deliberate. Other CCS projects target millions of tonnes per year; Greensand targets 300,000 to 400,000. That made the risk manageable for the consortium — INEOS, Harbour Energy, and Norse, representing the Danish state.

INEOS got to know the biomethane producers well before formalising any agreements, synchronised timelines across the full value chain, and acted as convener throughout. The EU Innovation Fund grant, awarded in autumn 2024, was material to the project's economics; it was sanctioned in December 2024.

The cost of the full CCS value chain still exceeds what emitters pay through carbon pricing alone — subsidies were necessary, and that is stated plainly. The voluntary CDR market provides an additional revenue route for early-stage storage projects while carbon pricing catches up.

Conclusion

Project Greensand is a learning project as much as a delivery project. Carbon Destroyer 2 is being scoped, and a storage licence application for the larger NINI East field is with the Danish Energy Agency.

Denmark faces a shortfall of roughly 10 million tonnes CO₂ to net zero. At 400,000 tonnes per vessel per year, closing that gap would require around 20 ships. What the infrastructure being commissioned in Esbjerg this summer proves is that these projects can be done. Tonnes will be delivered.

That matters for every organisation weighing whether offshore CO₂ storage is a credible part of the energy transition. It is. And if your organisation is thinking about where carbon removal fits into your climate strategy, Klimate can help you navigate the options.

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