Carbon Loop #007
YouTube, Dinners, Conferences and Registers
(The James Bond issue!)
Hello and welcome to The Carbon Loop — a newsletter by the CCUSNA dedicated to highlighting the Australian carbon capture, utilisation and storage industry.
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🎧 Podcast Pick: Zach Evans on the Realities of Underground Storage
While I think we can all agree that newsletters are the superior form of content distribution, for those few who prefer to get their updates through AirPods while doing chores around the house, consider checking out the excellent Navigating Carbon series on YouTube.
In the interview linked below, host Deb Ryan engages with Zach Evans on the complexities of underground carbon storage — from engineering and chemistry to policy and permitting.
I’m working my way through each episode and absolutely loving them. If Deb ever starts a newsletter — we’re cooked!
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🌊 The Dumping Register
In response to “growing public interest and stakeholder feedback,” the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) has begun publishing sea dumping permit applications and decisions directly on its website.
It’s a great resource if you want to stay up to date with plans for artificial reefs, the storage of dredged materials, or the occasional burial at sea. Oh — and from time to time, plans for offshore sequestration of CO₂.
🔗 Sea Dumping Applications and Permits
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🍽️ Energy Club Dinner
The Energy Club of Western Australia is hosting a CCS-themed Industry Dinner on Thursday, 17 April 2025, at the Hyatt Regency Perth. The evening will feature a panel discussion with representatives from Woodside, Santos, INPEX, Wood and SLB, who will share insights on the future of carbon management in Western Australia.
If I were being particularly cranky and facetious, I might observe that… well, it’s interesting to see the presenters all come from organisations that stand to make money from CCS, rather than from those who’ll be asked to pay for it — but I suspect that’s just my emitter-bias talking. And fortunately for you all, I’m far too mature and professional to make snotty comments like that.
In any event — don’t miss this chance to connect with industry leaders and stay informed about the developments shaping WA’s energy landscape.
🔗 Australia’s CCS Future: Progress, Challenges, and its Role in the APAC Region
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🚫 Setback in Gippsland: ExxonMobil and Woodside Exit SEA CCS Hub
It seems ExxonMobil and Woodside have pulled the plug on their South East Australia Carbon Capture Hub, which aimed to store up to 3 million tonnes of CO₂ in the depleted Bream field over a 7–10 year period.
See snip below from Kevin Morrison —
Reading the official announcement from ExxonMobil paints a more optimistic picture:
“Whilst we believe that the Bream field could provide a suitable CO₂ storage location, we have determined that the Bream A platform is not required to support any CCS project and will proceed with decommissioning the facility in accordance with our regulatory obligations.
We continue to explore opportunities to utilise the Bream reservoir for CCS, as well as screening other larger gas fields and associated infrastructure still involved in producing gas for Australia’s east coast.”
I’m not clever enough to know where the balance lies, but even if it isn’t the end of the world, it is disappointing to see a project slow down. We need steady progress and more success stories — we need more Moombas — and so hopefully this decision frees up resources for other projects with even stronger prospects.
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🎤 Rosie Takes the Mic (and Maybe Your Email Address)
A lot of this newsletter leans heavily toward Western Australia, mostly because that’s where I’m based, so it’s nice to have something to plug on the other side of the country.
If you’re in Victoria and even vaguely curious about the emerging CCUS industry, you should definitely get down to the Carbon Capture APAC Summit on 17–18 July 2025. Our very smart Chair, Rosie Johnstone, will be speaking — and hopefully doing her best to sign up more subscribers to the Carbon Loop!
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