On 23-24 November 2023, the Department for Energy and Resources Law of the University of Oslo organised an international conference on the legal aspects of Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) and Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR). The conference provided a platform for discussion and knowledge sharing on various subtopics within the field of CCUS, industrial carbon management, CDR and the law. The exchanges were particularly timely, as companies go ahead with commercial projects for the cross-border transport and storage of CO2 and States intensify their collaboration to build strategic partnerships around CCS, CCU and carbon removal value chains. The European Commission is also working on its upcoming industrial carbon management strategy. Finally, CDR is a key element of any mitigation strategy aiming to achieve the long-term temperature goal of the Paris Agreement, and is encompassed by several provisions of the international climate change, but also biodiversity framework.
During two days, the conference gathered experts from public authorities, companies, NGOs and academia.
Mr. Alexander Engh, Deputy Director General at the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy hold the keynote speech. This was followed by an address by H.E. Nicolas de La Grandville, EU Ambassador to Norway, on EU policy and legislative initiatives on CCUS and CDR.
The first day of the conference was dedicated to European and national law and policy frameworks for CCUS, followed by two sessions on CO2 transport (including transboundary) and CO2 storage regimes. The day ended with two sessions on economic incentives and regulatory support to CCUS value chains. The first half of the second day was dedicated to CDR, with a review of the applicable international legal framework and thereafter some applied CDR regimes. The last part of the event was hybrid with speakers from Brazil, Indonesia and India who offered a comparative analysis of CCUS legal frameworks outside Europe and North America.
The conference was organized by the Department for Energy and Resources Law of the University of Oslo, in collaboration with the Sabin Center for Climate Change law, Columbia Law School (USA). Prof. Catherine Banet (UiO) was chairing the conference on behalf of the University of Oslo. Romany Webb, Adjunct Assistant Professor and Deputy Director, represented the Sabin Center for Climate Change law.
The conference was supported by the research projects: Norwegian CCS Center (FME NCCS), NCS C+ (The Norwegian Continental Shelf: A Driver for Climate-Positive Norway), Device (Value chains for CO2 storage and blue hydrogen in Europe), and CCNS (CO2 storage research and cross-border synergies; southern Norwegian North Sea).
