Joint industry project

CO2RockLock

Developing in-situ CO2 mineralisation best practice

Challenge

The Joint Industry Project tackles the critical challenge of enabling safe, scalable, and verifiable CO2 storage through in-situ mineralisation in mafic-ultramafic rocks such as basalt and peridotite. Despite their global availability and potential for permanent trapping, these formations face technical hurdles including low permeability, injectivity decline, and mineralisation-induced clogging. Regulatory frameworks lack mineralisation-specific guidance, and current monitoring technologies are poorly suited to fractured reservoirs. The JIP will develop a DNV Recommended Practice to standardize containment strategies, align with ISO 27914:2025, and integrate reactive transport modelling, experimental validation, and tailored MRV protocols. This effort aims to unlock mineralisation as a viable pathway for large-scale carbon storage.

Solution

The CO2RockLock JIP aims to build upon the identified knowledge gaps and key technical challenges associated with CO2 mineralization in the absence of an overlying confining unit by bringing together the emerging CO2 mineralisation industry to leverage collective knowledge from pilot projects. Proposed areas include:

  • Redefining containment criteria
  • Develop standardized screening protocols for mineralisation reservoirs
  • Establish how to validate mineralisation potential
  • Develop specific MRV protocols
  • Evaluate well design and infrastructure
  • Investigate mineralisation yield estimates

Benefits/value

  • Permanent CO2 containment through rapid mineral trapping in mafic–ultramafic rocks
  • Reduced long-term monitoring needs compared to conventional storage methods
  • Global applicability in regions lacking sedimentary basins or caprock seals
  • Standardized guidance via a DNV Recommended Practice aligned with ISO 27914
  • Improved project scalability through validated modelling and experimental protocols
  • Enhanced regulatory clarity and stakeholder confidence
  • Tailored MRV frameworks for fractured reservoirs using geochemical and tracer-based methods
  • Decision-support tools for site screening and risk ranking
  • Early closure potential if ≥95% mineralisation is verified, reducing liability and cost

Project details

The project is planned to kick-off in 2026.

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