ExxonMobil breaks ground on Australian CO2 capture site

ExxonMobil said on March 11 that construction of a new Air Liquide facility that will capture and reuse CO₂ extracted from Gippsland gas offshore Australia's Victoria state had started.

Under a long-term agreement announced in 2021, ExxonMobil will capture and send excess CO₂ from the Longford gas conditioning plant to Air Liquide, who will then process it and provide the in-demand gas in various forms to Australian businesses.

Dylan Pugh, chair of ExxonMobil Australia, said that construction of the facility would allow CO₂ captured during the processing of Gippsland gas to be processed and purified to food and beverage grade quality. Modifications will be made to the Longford plant to support the process, ExxonMobil said.

ExxonMobil "is actively pursuing opportunities to provide CO₂ from our operations to customers for beneficial use, supporting our own emissions reduction goals while maintaining our supply of essential energy to Australia,” Pugh said.

“Decarbonising Gippsland gas presents opportunities for the Gippsland region to maintain its role as one of Australia’s significant energy hubs, supporting local jobs and our ongoing supply of energy Australians rely on,” he added.

The Gippsland basin joint venture is a 50-50 joint venture between BHP and Esso Australia, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil.