UK oil major BP is teaming up with gas and engineering company Linde for a big new carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in Texas.

The two companies will combine this with low-carbon hydrogen production, BP said.

The scheme could be up and running by 2026 and aims to store up to 15m tonnes of CO2 per year at multiple sites.

BP added this is equivalent to removing 3m cars from the road.

CO2 from Linde’s production facilities in the greater Houston area will be stored, along with that of third-party emitters along the US Gulf Coast.

This will be used to produce hydrogen to be sold to customers as fuel.

BP’s trading and shipping business also “aims to bring custom low-carbon solutions to the project, including renewable power and certified natural gas, along with commodity trading and price risk management expertise,” BP said.

The energy company will appraise and develop geological storage sites.

Dave Lawler, chairman and president of BP America, said: “The energy expertise in Texas and strong supply chains have been generations in the making. This new low-carbon energy project will help us leverage those strengths for the next chapter of the energy transition.”

“In particular, it can help decarbonise hard-to-abate industries for the greatest potential impact on emissions while protecting jobs,” he added.

Up and running in the UK

The project will be a further important step in the development of BP’s low-carbon business.

The group is already evaluating other large-scale CCS and hydrogen projects for industrial clusters in the US and has a plant running in Teesside in the UK.

“Linde is committed to lowering absolute carbon emissions 35% by 2035 and reaching climate neutrality by 2050,” said Dan Yankowski, president of Linde Gases North America.

“Capturing the CO2 from our hydrogen production plants in the Houston area will be a significant step towards achieving these goals,” he added.