Our activities in Ravenna

The Ravenna CCS consists in a CO₂ storage facility in which carbon dioxide emissions will be stored in depleted gas fields in the Adriatic Sea using the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) methodology. The goal is to contribute to reducing the emissions of industrial districts to make them more sustainable and competitive in the market, thereby creating the conditions for new opportunities for economic growth through decarbonization.

Thanks to the admission by the European Commission of the Callisto integrated Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project to the list of Projects of Common Interest (PCI Projects), the Ravenna CO₂ storage hub will play a key role in the creation of a high-tech international supply chain in the decarbonization sector. Admission to the CIP project list will enable the project, once it has completed the steps of the current process, which is expected to be concluded in 2024, to be eligible for the Connecting Europe Facility Fund (CEF), which is intended to provide non-reimbursable funding to support studies and the development of infrastructure for the reception, transport and storage of CO₂.

The plan is to capture carbon dioxide directly from industrial chimneys, isolate it from other flue gases and transfer it via underground pipelines to the future pumping station at Casal Borsetti. This plant currently receives and processes natural gas from offshore fields and will be converted for its new purpose. From there, CO₂ will be pressurised and transported to offshore platforms where, using existing wells, it will be injected into depleted reservoirs that are now being repurposed for long-term storage. Once it reaches the deepest layers of the subsurface, more than 2,500 metres below the seabed, the CO₂ will be locked in the same geological trap that had caused it to accumulate there over millions of years. Scientifically speaking, carbon dioxide is essentially the carbon component of methane and other gases that were extracted in the past years. Once adapted for this new purpose, these reservoirs will not be available for further production cycles. To transport CO₂ - an inert gas that is neither flammable nor explosive - the existing pipelines will mostly be reused, after they have been modified and upgraded.

The Ravenna CCS project aims to establish itself as a global centre of excellence for carbon capture and storage, with a total capacity of over 500 million tonnes (Mton). The expansive capacity of the depleted Adriatic reservoirs will allow for a gradual increase in storage volume, starting at 4 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) from 2027 - the planned launch date - and rising to 16 Mtpa after 2030. This progression will accelerate the decarbonization of an expanded range of industrial activities. Once activated, the project will immediately reduce up to 90% of the Ravenna district and Italian's industrial CO₂ emissions, such as those from thermal power plants or the so-called hard-to-abate sectors (e.g. (cement, steel, chemical and petrochemical industries, etc.), which lack effective decarbonization solutions in the short to medium term. By harmonising Eni's extensive knowledge of reservoirs with Snam's decades of experience in natural gas transport and storage and the world's most advanced techniques in emissions capture, the depleted gas reservoirs under the Adriatic sea will be repurposed, thus helping Italy and Europe reach their decarbonization targets. In the meantime, regardless of this new industrial plan, the production of natural gas is on track to be fully phased out in the coming years, in line with the decommissioning strategies agreed with the relevant authorities.