Cross-border carbon capture and storage (CCS) is moving from concept to execution in Asia Pacific, with emitter nations such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore exploring the shipment of captured CO₂ to storage hubs in Australia, Malaysia and Indonesia.
This emerging model matters for coal: in systems that still rely on coal-fired capacity, cross-border CCS could provide a compliance pathway to retain selected units while cutting emissions, though economics and policy will likely prioritise industrial clusters first.
Recent MOUs and policy workstreams – backed by the London Protocol’s 2019 provisional application that enables bilateral CO₂ export agreements – are building the legal and commercial scaffolding.
Europe’s Northern Lights offers a working template for CO₂ shipping and offshore storage, now operational and scaling.
For coal stakeholders, the signal is clear: CCS-ready units, CO₂ offtake contracts, and MRV readiness may become differentiators in the 2030s.
Source: Asia Natural Gas & Energy Association (ANGEA) – “Unlocking the vast potential of cross-border CCS in Asia Pacific.”
Asia Natural Gas & Energy Association
