Subsurface CCUS and low carbon energies: 5 things to look for in 2022

Andrew Latham, Vice President, Global Exploration, John Gorrie, Principal Analyst, Subsurface Research and Alana Tischuk, Research Analyst, Exploration

Increasing political and societal appetite for low carbon energies is changing the energy landscape – and 2022 should magnify these directional shifts.

Policy support and project momentum suggest a pathway for the build-out of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) and low carbon projects. But many of these projects and technologies are in the very early stages of development, especially at larger scale. Project cost control, operational implementation and continued supportive political momentum are essential to maintain this ambitious growth.

We expect the CCUS project pipeline to continue to swell next year, but the industry will remain in its infancy relative to the scale required to fully support a 1.5 degree scenario by 2050. Where will attention be focused in the year ahead?

In Subsurface CCUS and low carbon energies: 5 things to look for in 2022 we draw on Wood Mackenzie Lens Subsurface to explore:

1. CCUS: a new industry rises
2. EOR and depleted fields attract near term investment
3. CCUS projects challenged by costs and policies
4. Geothermal energy – slowly heats up
5. Underground hydrogen storage: out of the salt cavern, into the reservoir?

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