Fluxys, OGE and Wintershall Dea are teaming up to create a CO2 corridor from Southern Germany to Belgium’s CO2 export hubs

In the context of the State Visit of Their Majesties the King and the Queen of the Belgians to Germany, the CEOs of Fluxys, OGE and Wintershall Dea have signed a cooperation agreement for CO2 transport. The three companies plan to build a cross-border pipeline to transport carbon dioxide with the objective to support the further decarbonisation of otherwise hard-to-abate industries in Germany.

Fluxys Belgium, Wintershall Dea and OGE, driven by a common vision on carbon capture, transport and storage (CCS) have decided to start collaborating on the transport of CO₂ from highly industrialised Southern Germany to the Belgian CO₂ export hubs currently under development. The emissions are planned to be exported for safe and permanent storage to reservoirs in the North Sea. 

Fluxys and OGE will be responsible for the development of the necessary infrastructure to transport the CO₂ by pipelines in Belgium and Germany, respectively, ensuring the interoperability of a cross-border system. Wintershall Dea is to be in charge of steering customer engagement in Southern Germany, to adequately design the network. 

Fluxys CO₂ infrastructure and exit hubs in Belgium offer a reliable and open-access short distance solution to decarbonise Southern German as well as Belgian industries. The short distance to the border, coupled with volume aggregation from Germany and Belgium, has the potential to result in competitive CO₂ transmission prices.

“Southern Germany has a vibrant industry, and its decarbonisation will be key to remain competitive. Therefore, we are glad to have next to Fluxys another strong partner with Open Grid Europe to build an infrastructure that provides a reliable removal of CO₂ from that region to offshore storage sites,” says Mario Mehren, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Wintershall Dea.

Dr. Jörg Bergmann, CEO of OGE: “One key success factor of a successful energy transformation is the use of carbon management in the form of a CO₂ infrastructure for the purpose of CCUS to enable industry to decarbonise. OGE is therefore particularly pleased that we will further intensify our cooperation with Fluxys and Wintershall Dea. The option of transit or cross-border transport of CO₂ with our CO₂-network will make a valuable contribution towards achieving the climate targets and maintaining industrial value creation in Germany.”

Pascal De Buck, CEO of Fluxys: “Multiple strong partnerships are essential for the development of an open-access CO₂ infrastructure to accommodate the carbon capture and storage chain. We are delighted to welcome OGE and broaden our ongoing collaboration with Wintershall Dea to reinforce and accelerate the decarbonisation of industry in Germany and beyond via the Belgian backbone, which will also connect the Belgian industries.  The CCS chain is essential for the industry to decarbonise whilst maintaining economic activity and employment. It is our ambition to offer the capacity to the market for the transport of 30 million tonnes of CO₂ by 2030 through the Fluxys infrastructure.”   

_{About Wintershall Dea}

_{Wintershall Dea is transforming from the leading European independent gas and oil company to become a leading European independent gas and carbon management company. We have more than 120 years of experience as an operator and project partner along the entire E&P value chain. The company with German roots and headquarters in Kassel and Hamburg explores for and produces gas and oil in 11 countries worldwide in an efficient and responsible manner. With activities in Europe, Latin America and the MENA region (Middle East & North Africa), Wintershall Dea has a global upstream portfolio and, with its participation in natural gas transport, is also active in the midstream business. And we develop carbon management and low carbon hydrogen projects to contribute to climate goals and secure energy supplies. More in our Annual Report.}

_{As a European gas and oil company, we support the EU's 2050 carbon neutrality target. As our contribution we have set ourselves ambitious targets: We want to be net zero across our entire upstream operations – both operated and non-operated – by 2030. This includes Scope 1 (direct) and Scope 2 (indirect) greenhouse gas emissions on an equity share basis. Wintershall Dea will also bring its methane emissions intensity below 0.1 per cent by 2025. We endorsed the World Bank’s Initiative ‘Zero Routine Flaring by 2030’ and continue to support the initiative aimed at eliminating routine flaring in operated assets by 2030. In addition, we plan to support global decarbonisation efforts by building up a carbon management and hydrogen business to potentially abate 20-30 million tonnes of CO2 per annum by 2040. You can find more about this in our Sustainability Report.}

_{Wintershall Dea was formed from the merger of Wintershall Holding GmbH and DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG, in 2019. Today, the company employs more than 2,000 people worldwide from almost 60 nations.}

_{About Fluxys Belgium}

_{Fluxys Belgium is a Euronext listed subsidiary of infrastructure group Fluxys headquarted in Belgium. With 900 employees the company operates 4,000 kilometers of pipeline, a liquefied natural gas terminal totalling a yearly regasification capacity of 104 TWh and an underground storage facility.}

_{As a purpose-led company, Fluxys Belgium together with its stakeholders contributes to a better society by shaping a bright energy future. Building on the unique assets of its infrastructure and its commercial and technical expertise, Fluxys Belgium is committed to transporting hydrogen, biomethane or any other carbon-neutral energy carrier as well as CO2, accommodating the capture, usage and storage of the latter.}

_{www.fluxys.com}

_{About OGE}

_{OGE is one of Europe's leading transmission system operators. With our approximately 12,000 kilometers of pipeline network, we transport gas throughout Germany and, due to our geographical location, we are the link for gas flows in the European single market. Our approximately 1,450 employees stand for security of supply. We make our network available to all market participants on a non-discriminatory, market-oriented and transparent basis. We shape energy supply. Today and in the energy mix of the future. For more information about the company, please visit www.oge.net.}