€590 million to capture and transport CO2 from the Molins cement plant to make eco-fuels

BarcelonaThe energy company Enagás has closed an agreement with the Catalan company Molins for an innovative industrial decarbonisation project that aims to capture CO₂ from the Sant Vicenç dels Horts cement plant facilities and transport it by gas pipeline to Tarragona for its subsequent use to manufacture green fuels, the two companies reported on Thursday.

Last November, the president of Enagás, Antoni Llardén has already explained the scope of this "great project" to capture CO₂ from Molins and transport it to Repsol's facilities in Tarragona to make eco-fuels, during his speech at the 10th Global Forum on Engineering and Public Works and 1st Forum Camins Cerdà. Then, Llardé made it clear that "we will not make the energy transition if we do not reindustrialize."

The project, named MOUSOL NetCO2, is a candidate for the Innovation Funds 2025, a European program endowed with 38 billion euros to promote the decarbonization of the economy. According to Molins and Enagás, this initiative will require a total investment of approximately 590 million euros and will allow the capture and transport of one million tons of CO₂

The CO₂ captured in Sant Vicenç dels Horts will be transported by pipeline and stored for later use in the production of green fuels. The CO₂ transport network will be open access and will allow for the efficient transport, measurement, quality control and delivery of the captured carbon dioxide. The innovative solution is particularly relevant for a sector, the cement sector, which is difficult to decarbonise.

Innovation and decarbonisation

The CEO of Molins, Marcos Cela, has highlighted in a statement that this project is an example of the company's "firm commitment" to the decarbonisation of the construction sector. This project, he said, "is an example of how collaboration between sectors can accelerate decarbonisation and contribute to European climate objectives."

For his part, the CEO of Enagás, Arturo Gonzalo, has indicated that the project is part of the company's objective to reduce the carbon footprint in industrial sectors where it is more difficult and "represents an opportunity for Enagás and Molins to jointly lead innovation to help innovation to help."