Liverpool Bay CO2 T&S project includes the transportation and storage (T&S) infrastructure for the HyNet North West Industrial Decarbonisation Cluster in the UK.
The infrastructure is owned and operated by Liverpool Bay Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Limited, a part of the Eni group.
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The Liverpool Bay CCS is the central component of the HyNet Cluster, which aims to reduce carbon emissions from industrial sites in northwest England and north Wales.
Construction of the project is expected to commence this year, ready for planned start-up in 2028, in line with industrial emitters in the HyNet Cluster.
Construction of the T&S system is slated to begin in 2025, with expected start-up in 2028.
Background
In October 2020, Eni UK secured a CO2 storage licence from the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), previously known as the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA).
A year later, HyNet project was selected as a Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) project in Track 1 of the UK Government’s tender process.
In October 2023, Eni UK and the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) reached an agreement in principle on key terms and conditions regarding the economic, regulatory, and governance framework for CO₂ transport and storage in the HyNet North West CCS cluster.
Top five priority emitters (T1 emitters), who will supply carbon dioxide to HyNet, were also selected in 2023.
In March 2024, the Secretary of State for DESNZ awarded the Development Consent Order (DCO) enabling the transport of captured CO2.
In October 2024, the UK Government allocated up to £21.7bn over 25 years to support CCS initiatives across the UK. Eni also secured government’s funding for the Liverpool Bay CO2 T&S project.
Eni achieved financial close for the Liverpool Bay CCS project in April 2025, enabling the project to transition into the construction phase.
Liverpool Bay Carbon Dioxide T&S Details
The HyNet North West project aims to capture and permanently store carbon dioxide emissions from industrial plants in the North West of England and North Wales.
The depleted hydrocarbon fields of Hamilton, Hamilton North, and Lennox in the Irish Sea will serve as storage sites for the captured CO2.
The Liverpool Bay CO2 Transport and Storage (T&S) infrastructure will capture CO2 from regional industrial emitters and inject it into both new and repurposed gas pipelines.
It will collect carbon dioxide from emitters such as those involved in cement manufacturing, low-carbon hydrogen production, and energy-from-waste. The remaining capacity will be allocated to additional emitters as determined by UK authorities.
The project will repurpose existing onshore and offshore infrastructure in Liverpool Bay, and construct a new onshore CO2 pipeline. It will also include developing spur pipelines to connect industrial emitters to the T&S infrastructure.
According to Eni, the existing natural gas import pipeline from the Point of Ayr Gas Terminal will be repurposed into an export pipeline for CO2 transport. The pipeline will transport carbon dioxide to Douglas Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) platform and to the depleted oil field platforms for injection.
Planned activities encompass installing the new Douglas CCS platform, utilising existing reservoirs for CO2 storage, drilling and re-completing wells, and laying new pipeline sections.
Additionally, power and communication cables will be installed, and the storage sites will be monitored in compliance with regulatory requirements.
Before these developments commence, a partial decommissioning program will prepare the Liverpool Bay assets for transportation and storage.
Initially, the project will have a storage capacity of 4.5 million tonnes of CO2 annually, with the potential to increase to 10 million tonnes per year after 2030.
This capacity will significantly contribute to the UK’s goal of storing 20-30 million tonnes of CO2 annually.
Contractors Involved
In April 2025, Saipem secured around €520m contract from Eni for the Liverpool Bay CCS project in the UK.
The project, expected to span three years, involves converting a traditional gas compression and treatment facility at Point of Ayr in North Wales into a CO2 Electrical Compression Station.
The station will facilitate the permanent storage of CO2 in offshore depleted fields under Liverpool Bay.
Saipem contracted Baker Hughes in June 2025 for carbon dioxide compression technology for the same project.
As agreed, Baker Hughes will provide three advanced CO2 centrifugal compressor trains equipped with electric motors and a Lufkin Gears gearbox. This compressor package will support the re-injection of CO2.
