Nikolas Rigas, EnEarth’s Head of Carbon Storage, recently spoke at two notable events in Athens; The 14th Annual Capital Link Operational Excellence in Shipping Forum, organized by Capital Link Forum & The Capacity Building Workshop, co-hosted by the Global CCS Institute, EDEYEP, and EBN
During these events, Nikolas emphasized the crucial role of the Prinos CO2 Storage project in ensuring the future of Greece’s industrial sector and the thousands of . His core message was the value of collaboration among all stakeholders to prevent bureaucratic delays and ensure smooth progress.
Nikolas pointed out that addressing the climate crisis, in line with the European Commission's Net Zero Industry Act, and the rising costs of CO2 emission allowances, makes carbon capture and storage (CCS) the only viable solution for hard-to-abate industries. He illustrated the urgency of the situation in Europe, noting that two CO2 storage projects are already underway in the Mediterranean — EnEarth’s Prinos project and ENI’s Ravenna project in Italy. However, their combined capacity is only sufficient to handle less than 10% of the CO2 emissions produced by the two countries’ industries, which together emit around 75 million tons per year.
"This data alone demonstrates the urgency of moving forward with these projects. The key to their timely and successful implementation is methodical cooperation across the entire chain: the government must develop policies to accelerate and support these investments; regulatory and licensing authorities need to work efficiently; industry must make significant investments in emissions capture; other entities must handle the liquefaction process; transporters need to play their part; and, of course, storage facility operators must be coordinated. If even one of these links is not aligned, the whole chain collapses, the projects stall, and the industry risks facing significant costs and even the threat of collapse," Nikolas stressed.
Further emphasizing the importance of effective management by public administration, adherence to agreed timelines, and continuous cooperation with operators to prevent projects from being jeopardized by bureaucracy. "In June, EnEarth submitted an application to the Hellenic Hydrocarbon Resources Management Company (EDEYEP) for a storage permit for the Prinos project. In early August, we also submitted the Environmental Social and Impact Assessment (ESIA), which will now undergo public consultation," he added.