Kasawari CCS Project To Be Among World’s Largest: Premier

KUALA LUMPUR / 11/02/2023

SUNWAY CITY (Kuala Lumpur), Sat:  The Kasawari Carbon Capture Storage (CCS) project off Bintulu undertaken by Petronas Carigali would be one of the world’s largest offshore CCS projects when fully completed, Sarawak’s Premier, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Haji Johari Tun Openg said here today. 

Recently, the company, a subsidiary of PETRONAS, had reached the Final Investment Decision (FID) for the development of the Kasawari CCS that was expected to reduce 3.3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually, he said.

According to a report by the Edge, Phase 2 of the Kasawari project would send up to 3.3 million tonnes of that carbon dioxide back underground into the reservoir each year. 

While Phase 1 extracts natural gas from the Kasawari field to be sent via pipeline for processing at the Petronas Bintulu LNG Complex some 300km away, it would also extract unwanted carbon dioxide, the report said. 

The Premier pointed out that Sarawak had passed and gazetted the Land Code (Carbon Storage) Rules, 2022 to include the airspace and properties above the surface of the land, as well as the seabed of the state’s continental shelf to provide legal framework for Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) activities in the State.

He said this in his keynote address at the Sunway University inaugural ASEAN Education Cities Conference 2023.

Datuk Patinggi Abang Haji Johari said Sarawak had an estimated 30 trillion cubic meters of carbon storage capacity in the seabed of its continental shelf. 

“The depleted or abandoned petroleum fields in offshore areas are suitable for the development of secured and permanent storage of captured carbon dioxide (CO2) by oil and gas companies who now have obligations to reduce emission of CO2,” he told the audience comprising students, lecturers, speakers and stakeholders. 

He pointed out that Sarawak was the first state in Malaysia to enact legislation permitting carbon and nature-based solution venture businesses. 

“We have amended and gazetted our Forest (Forest Carbon Activity) Rules, 2022 which will provide a legal framework to regulate forest produce that covers carbon stocks and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Permanent Forest Estates, both in state and alienated land.

“By allowing carbon and nature venture businesses, Sarawak is sending a clear signal that it is committed to addressing climate change and promoting sustainable economic growth,” he further said. 

Additionally, reputable companies from Singapore, South Korea and Japan had also shown keen interest in participating and investing in CCUS in Sarawak, the Premier added. 

Earlier, Tan Sri Jeffery Cheah, the founder and current chairman of the Sunway Group and Chancellor of Sunway University also spoke. 

Later, the Premier had a 45-minute meeting with the Sunway Group to explore prospects of collaborations between Sarawak and the conglomerate that had operations in 12 industries with core businesses in property and construction.

Sumber dari : Sarawakku