CCB Energy CarbonLink has received NOK63.3 million ($6.77 million) from state-owned "climate change" fund Enova to develop a CO₂ reception terminal at Øygarden outside Bergen, with operations targeted for the end of 2028.
The CarbonLink facility will be built beside the existing Northern Lights receiving terminal. Its first phase is designed to handle about 500,000 tonnes of captured CO₂ per year, although Enova expects lower volumes during the initial years of operation.
Captured CO₂ will arrive by ship or road and then be transferred onward for permanent storage beneath the seabed. The road connection is intended to give industrial companies across Norway access to storage for smaller consignments that would not support transport by a purpose-built CO₂ carrier.
Enova’s grant can cover up to half of the project’s investment cost. The state-owned organization is also developing support for companies planning their own carbon capture facilities, many of which will require access to a terminal able to aggregate smaller volumes.
“The new receiving terminal in Øygarden is an important part of Enova’s investment in carbon capture and storage,” said Knut Granlund, Head of Industry at Enova. “Most companies investing in such capture facilities will depend on being able to deliver their CO₂ to the new terminal.”
CCB Energy CarbonLink plans to develop the terminal in stages, allowing capacity to increase as more capture plants enter operation. The initial design capacity of about 500,000 tonnes per year applies to the first construction phase and can be expanded later.
“A phased development can reduce the need for large investments before demand has been sufficiently demonstrated,” said Ronny Haufe, Managing Director of CCB Energy CarbonLink. “At the same time, the infrastructure can be scaled up when new capture facilities are ready.”
The project builds on cooperation announced by CCB Energy and Northern Lights in 2022. That agreement covered infrastructure to receive and process CO₂ from local and regional industry, including deliveries for which shipping was not considered practical.
Northern Lights currently receives CO₂ transported from capture sites by specialized ships. The material is held temporarily at Øygarden before moving by pipeline to offshore injection facilities and a geological reservoir about 2,500 metres beneath the North Sea seabed.
In its first phase, Northern Lights is capable of moving, injecting and storing up to 1.5 million tonnes annually. Announced in March 2025, the second phase is intended to bring overall injection capacity up to at least 5 million tonnes per year.
Northern Lights, owned in equal shares by Equinor and Shell, with TotalEnergies holding the third stake, completed its initial facilities in 2024. The first CO₂ volumes were injected and stored in August 2025.
