Enagás, the Basque Government through the Basque Energy Agency (EVE), and industrial companies Petronor, Heidelberg Materials, Calcinor and Terresis Centro de Magnesitas Navarras, with the collaboration of Nortegas, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the joint and coordinated development of the ‘COnet2 Norte Hub’, a comprehensive project in northern Spain that will design the full CO₂ value chain, including capture, transport, distribution, use and storage (CCUS).
The agreement was signed at the Energy Intelligence Center (EIC) in Bilbao, with the participation of the Basque Minister for Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability, Mikel Jauregi; the CEO of the Basque Energy Agency (EVE), Mikel Amundarain; the CEO of Enagás, Arturo Gonzalo; the CEO of Petronor, José Ignacio Zudaire; the Chairman of Calcinor, Jon Santa Cruz; the Chairman of Heidelberg Materials, Jesús Ortiz; the CEO of Terresis Centro de Magnesitas Navarras, Jorge Baños; and the CEO of Nortegas, Juan Villar.
Also attending the event were the Director General for Energy and Digital Transition, Business R&D&I and Entrepreneurship of the Government of Navarre, Garbiñe Basterra, and the Chairman of the Bilbao Port Authority, Iván Jiménez, among other officials.
The project will play a key role in helping to decarbonise hard-to-abate industrial sectors, in line with European CO₂ reduction targets. It is expected to gradually expand to other companies and regions in northern Spain as part of the ‘COnet2 Norte Hub’, which is included in the provisional list of European Projects of Common Interest (PCI).
This joint initiative will facilitate the development of a coordinated strategy to apply for European funding, including support from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and the Innovation Fund.
The agreement will significantly strengthen the technical and commercial maturity of applications for these European funds, as it will be incorporated into each party’s funding proposals.
The main objective of the ‘COnet2 Norte Hub’ collaboration agreement is to ensure an integrated, structured and efficient development of the entire CO₂ value chain in these regions: from capture at participating industrial sites to transport and distribution via logistics infrastructure. This infrastructure will include dedicated pipelines, a temporary storage and liquefaction terminal, and the necessary maritime facilities for geological storage and/or CO₂ utilisation.
Enagás and the Basque Government will jointly lead, in coordination with Nortegas, the design of the CO₂ logistics infrastructure, based on the Enagás Transporte del Norte (ETN) network and the Bahía de Bizkaia Gas (BBG) plant, both jointly owned by Enagás and EVE.
Meanwhile, Petronor, Heidelberg Materials, Calcinor and Terresis Centro de Magnesitas Navarras are developing their own CO₂ capture projects. In addition, Petronor will explore the promotion of CO₂ utilisation technologies, reinforcing the circular nature of the project and opening up new industrial opportunities.
This initiative is directly aligned with the Basque Industry Plan 2030, as part of the ‘Hard to Zero’ initiative aimed at decarbonising industrial processes that are difficult to electrify. ‘Hard to Zero’ has been recognised as a Transformative Project under the designation ‘Decarbonisation Valley’, highlighting its strategic importance within Basque industrial policy.
The ‘COnet2 Norte Hub’ is a clear example of public-private collaboration aimed at building a coherent and efficient value chain for industrial CO₂ management. Its joint development will help optimise logistics costs, improve project viability, and ensure that different industrial decarbonisation initiatives follow a common roadmap.
This will enhance the industrial competitiveness of northern Spain and reinforce the commitment to achieving European climate neutrality targets.
With the signing of this agreement, the participating companies take a decisive step towards advancing a benchmark project within the European Union and reaffirm their commitment to innovative solutions that will enable a viable and sustainable decarbonisation model
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