Greenhouse Gas Assessment Permit (“GHG Acreages”) in the Bonaparte and Browse Basins have been awarded to deepC Store and Azuli International.

PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

7th August 2024

Greenhouse Gas Assessment Permit (“GHG Acreages”) in the Bonaparte and Browse Basins have been awarded to deepC Store and Azuli International, who simultaneously entered into a Joint Study Agreement for a strategic partnership with J-POWER, cementing the likelihood that this will comprise a commercial-scale Australian sequestration opportunity for CO2 volumes from Japan and Australia as well as the surrounding region. 

deepC Store Pty Ltd (headquartered in Perth, Western Australia; Daein Cha, Managing Director; “deepC Store”) and Azuli (Australia) Pty Ltd[1] (headquartered in Perth, Western Australia; Ralph Cowan, Director; “Azuli”) (collectively the “Parties”) have been awarded two GHG Acreages offshore Australia comprising blocks GHG23-1 and GHG23-2.  The Parties have also entered into a Joint Study Agreement for a strategic partnership with Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (headquartered in Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Hitoshi Kanno, President; “J-POWER”) by which J-POWER intends to become a joint venture participant in the GHG Acreages, which have the potential to permanently store up to 1 giga (billion) tonne of CO2.   The Parties and J-POWER intend to develop a full value chain project from liquified CO2 (“LCO2”) receipt at locations in Japan and Australia as well as surrounding region, with the LCO2 transported by ship to floating storage and injection (“FSI”) facilities in Australian waters.

GHG23-1: Challis & Cassini

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GHG23-2: Carbine & Leveque

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The GHG Acreages are both located in Commonwealth waters offshore Australia some 200-250km off the Northwest coast.  The GHG Acreages awarded to dCS and Azuli are as identified in pale green in the maps above. 

Key features of the GHG Acreages are as follows:

On award of the GHG Acreages, the Parties and J-POWER have entered into a Joint Study Agreement under which:

• The GHG Acreages will be matured in compliance with Australian Government requirements

• Opportunities will be considered to accelerate development of the GHG Acreages, such that the resulting projects can support the objectives of the Australian and Japanese Government in respect of decarbonisation targets 

• Three distinct component projects of the Carbon Capture and Storage (“CCS”) value chain will be established comprising:  LCO2 shipping, FSI and Storage. 

• J-POWER makes a cash contribution on the joint study, which is for early work of this project, and secures rights to  participating interest in the joint venture that will further develop the GHG Acreages. 

deepC Store Managing Director Daein Cha said “we are very pleased to be awarded the 2 GHG Acreages that both show a good fit for “CStore1,” our LCO2 shipping and FSI based CCS development concept. Also following on from our partnership established with J-POWER, a significant global player and pioneer in the electric power industry, we are committed to accelerating the development of CStore1 and advancing Australia and Japan’s strategic alliance in the CCS business.”

Azuli International Managing Director Hamish Wilson said “Azuli is thrilled to have secured these Australian GHG Acreages. We have long recognised the potential for CO2sequestration in Australia and its potentially important role in supporting the decarbonisation ambitions of both Japan and Australia.   We are fully committed to developing a CO2 transport and storage solution that addresses the needs of hard-to-abate emitters in the Asia Pacific region.   We plan to mature a commercially viable and technically robust solution through innovative strategic partnerships with key supply chain partners.  We look forward to progressing our joint venture with deepC Store, J-POWER and other future partners, building on our collaborative relationship with the Australian government.”

J-POWER Executive Officer Akira Yabumoto said “We are excited to work with deepC Store and Azuli on CCS development. We expect that this development will contribute providing a valuable option to Japan and Australia as well as the surrounding region to reduce CO2. CCS will play a critical role in J-POWER's BLUE MISSION 2050, as well as global energy transitions. We will continue pursuing opportunities for CCS development and carbon reduction with CCS.”

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Notes for Editors:

Overview of deepC Store Pty Ltd

Australian company and a CCS project developer and operator.  dCS’s “CStore1” project has a 1st mover position in the Asia Pacific region as a commercial-scale floating CCS hub that covers all of the CCS value chain, that is, capture and liquefaction of CO2 onshore, transport by ships to the floater hub, and injection from the floater hub.  More information on dCS available at www.deepcstore.com.

Overview of Azuli (Australia) Pty Ltd

Australian company which works with industrial emitters in Asia Pacific to develop CCS solutions to help them decarbonise.  Its parent company Azuli international is very experienced and active in CCS developments in the UK and Europe.  Azuli is a joint venture partner in deepC Store’s “CStore1” project, which aims to deliver a commercial-scale floating CCS hub that covers all of the CCS value chain.  More information on Azuli available at www.azuliccs.com.

Overview of J-POWER

J-POWER was founded in 1952 as a Japanese government–owned company, and fully privatized in 2004. J-POWER group operates power generation and transmission business in Japan as well overseas. J-POWER has approximately 26 GW of installed generation capacity in Japan and overseas, consist of fossil fuel, hydro and other renewables such as wind and geothermal. J-POWER announced BLUE MISSION 2050, which is the strategic roadmap toward 2050 and committed reduction of CO2emissions. J-POWER is pursuing various decarbonization options to achieve carbon neutral in its power generation business by 2050.  More information on J-POWER available at www.jpower.co.jp/english/.

For further detail please contact 

deepC Store: Daein Cha at getintouch@deepcstore.com.

Azuli: Ralph Cowan at ralph@azuliccs.com 

J-Power: Public Relations Dept. at  mediarelations@jpower.co.jp

[1] Azuli Australia Pty Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Azuli International Ltd, headquartered in Wiltshire, UK; Directors Hamish Wilson, Glen Cayley and Brian Mitchener.