The Launch Stores — offshore storage sites — will play a key role in large-scale CO₂ storage under the North Sea. Franc Boverhof, CCS Deputy Midstream Manager at TotalEnergies, explains how the Innovation Fund, combined with cutting-edge engineering, teamwork and transparency, is contributing to the realisation of this critical infrastructure.
Shell and TotalEnergies are collaborating on two Launch Stores — depleted gas fields under the North Sea being repurposed as permanent CO2 storage sites.
“The Launch Stores will ensure that the captured CO2 doesn’t end up in the atmosphere”, says Franc. “Without reliable storage capacity, everything will come to a halt. No storage means no transport. Without transport, emitters will have nowhere to put their captured CO2.”
These emitters will be Aramis’ end customers: industrial companies that capture their CO2 and rely on the system to deliver it to the offshore storage sites.
Availability has been a core design principle for both Launch Stores: each will be able to temporarily take over the other’s capacity during maintenance or disruption. This built-in flexibility will enhance overall reliability and make the system more attractive to emitters. The Launch Stores will therefore be both technically and economically indispensable to the viability of the Aramis initiative.
