This newsletter provides an update on the progress of the Aramis project. But first, let us start by saying we are delighted to welcome our new Head of Joint Team and four new Team Leads to the project!

In this newsletter, Project Lead Lex Backer discusses how the project is coming along and what still needs to be done before we can start on an important milestone – the FEED (Front-End Engineering and Design) phase – in the summer. We also tell you about the requirements for the last remaining transport and storage capacity available at Aramis phase 1 and the relevant specifications. And we provide an inside look at the Aramis Commercial Working Group, inform you about conferences we will be attending and look back at our highly successful Aramis – Get the Connection event.

We hope you enjoy reading our newsletter!

We have come a long way already
A recent concept select value assurance review shows we have made substantial progress. Our technical concept for the trunkline and the integrated project is considered robust. Two storage licenses have been submitted for approval and a third is in progress. Neptune Energy is planning to join the system from day one, and there is good collaboration with Porthos, CO₂next and emitters. Efforts to secure permits are ongoing, and launching customers are being engaged. A lot of good work is being done. And so much has already been achieved.

Annemarie Manger will take up her post as ‘Head of Joint Team’ for the Aramis project on 11 April. In this new position she will manage a combined multidisciplinary team consisting of staff members from TotalEnergies, Shell, Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN) and Gasunie.

Until recently, Annemarie Manger (57) was the Director for Sustainability and Decarbonisation at Tata Steel in IJmuiden where she led the development of its sustainability ambitions. “The Aramis project is a unique public-private partnership: companies with a great deal of knowledge and experience, each one capable of accelerating the energy transition on its own, but even more effective as a partnership. Realisation of the Aramis infrastructure is essential to meet the Dutch and European 2030 climate targets. This is a great challenge and I am looking forward to working with the team to achieve this task”, says Annemarie.

A result-oriented leader who unites her team
On behalf of the Aramis steering group, Berte Simons (EBN) states: “In Annemarie, we have found a very experienced leader who focuses on results, acts decisively and unites her team. We’re convinced that she’s the right person to take the next steps with Aramis. To achieve this, cooperation with industry, government authorities, other CO₂ -related projects and North Sea partners is essential.”

In addition to Annemarie Manger, four team leads have also been appointed: James Flynn (Project), Willem Punt (Asset), Bernard Reith (Corporate) and Tom Mathysen (Integration).

Last year, more than 20 parties expressed genuine interest in wanting to team up with Aramis to become launching customers for the first 5 Mtpa of CO₂ to be transported and stored in offshore gas fields under the North Sea.

The transport and storage capacity is developed and offered to interested parties via a joint marketing collaboration by Shell and TotalEnergies that Authority for Consumers & Markets (ACM) greenlighted in June 2022.

As demand from the 20 interested parties exceeded the available 5 Mtpa of CO₂ capacity, a non-discriminatory selection procedure was developed to rank and select the launching customers.

In August 2022, Shell and TotalEnergies signed nine HoTs with potential customers. While these HoTs are non-binding, they lay down the principles for the fully termed agreements and contain an exclusivity clause in return for a provisional capacity reservation.

The 5 Mtpa, together with the potential incremental capacity of third-party storage operators and the completed concept select studies, form the basis for the FEED studies that will commence this summer.

Some launching capacity was recently released. This limited remaining capacity (around 0.3 to 0.5 Mtpa) will be offered by the joint marketers to interested parties in accordance with the procedure established last year.

If you are interested, please visit our website for further information on the process and schedule.

Aramis has established various specifications for the CO₂ that will be fed into the transport infrastructure to ensure the non-corrosivity of the CO₂ mixture under normal, transient and upset conditions. Maximum alignment has been pursued with specifications for existing and other planned CCS infrastructure. All requirements per class, component, constraint and unit as well as other information can be found on our website, where you can also download a handy PDF that includes the relevant specifications.

In our newsletter, we like to provide insight into the Aramis project organisation. This time, we highlight the Aramis Commercial Working Group.

On 23 March, our Aramis – Get the Connection event took place in Rotterdam. It was great to see 130 team members in attendance. We celebrated our achievements, spoke about the roadmap ahead and participated in a special Aramis and CCS pub quiz. And we were impressed by the performance of two improvisation comedy artists who, among other acts, sang “Our carbon is under the ocean, our carbon is under the sea” (to the tune of My Bonnie is over the ocean).

It was also very inspiring to warmly welcome the newly appointed joint team: James Flynn, Tom Mathysen, Willem Punt and Bernard Reith. They will be led by Annemarie Manger, our new Head of Joint Team. Together, they will work hard to transition the project to the FEED phase this summer.

Aramis is gaining visibility and we are being invited to speak at conferences and seminars on a regular basis. We recently were a guest at:

• Carbon Storage Dialogues (16 February, Utrecht)
• ZEP (Zero Emissions Platform) webinar (9 March, online)
• ZEP 74^th Advisory Council (22 March, Brussels)
• European Commission (DG, ENER): CO₂ Network TEN-E Thematic Area Group event for PCI projects (24 March, Brussels)
• European Commission (DG, CLIMA): The Emerging EU CO₂ Transport and Storage Market workshop (30 March, Brussels)

In the next quarter, you will be able to see us at – among others - the following events:

• Net Zero Within Reach conference (26 April, Brussels)
• Decarb Connect Europe event (12-14 June, Antwerp)
• Sustainable Energy Week (20-22 June, Brussels)

If you would like us to speak at your conference or event, please email: info@aramis-ccs.com or reach out to your contact person at Aramis.

Aramis offers a CCS solution that will contribute to the objectives of the National Climate Agreement and the European Green Deal by providing CO₂ transport infrastructure for hard-to-abate industries. In doing so, Aramis makes a significant contribution to CO₂ reduction in the Netherlands and North-West Europe. The knowledge and expertise of the four collaborating partners (TotalEnergies, Shell, EBN and Gasunie) and the project’s large-scale and unique open-access philosophy make Aramis an attractive decarbonization solution to industry.

For more information:
Visit our website www.aramis-ccs.com, or send an email to info@aramis-ccs.com.