Location of the EVASTOCO2 project study areas.
© BRGM
At a time when research into the geological storage of carbon dioxide is being undertaken with a view to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, the Ministry of Industry and Energy has published the first overall estimate of storage capacity in mainland France.
Financed by ADEME and coordinated by BRGM, this study, named EVASTOCO2, which was launched in 2023, has involved public bodies (IFPEN, University of Lorraine, BRGM) and private stakeholders (TotalEnergies, GEOSTOCK, AVENIA, TEREGA, CVA ENGINEERING, AKKODIS DIGITAL). The Directorate-General for Energy and Climate (DGEC), which commissioned the study, has just released the initial results.
Five areas in the major sedimentary basins of mainland France on land or at sea were chosen for the study:
- the Atlantic seaboard (English Channel, Bay of Biscay);
- the Paris Basin;
- the Lorraine Basin;
- the Aquitaine Basin;
- the South-East Basin and the Gulf of Lion.
Two types of potential reservoir identified: former hydrocarbon deposits and saline aquifers
Two types of potential reservoir were identified: former hydrocarbon deposits (also known as depleted reservoirs) and saline aquifers.
The storage capacity of the depleted reservoirs has been estimated at 700 Mt.
The estimated storage capacity of the saline aquifers is 2,300 Mt on land (including 100 Mt in closed structures) and 1,800 Mt at sea (including 360 Mt in closed structures).
The uncertainty in these estimates is less for the saline aquifers than for the depleted reservoirs. These theoretical estimates will require new data to be acquired locally if projects are launched at one or more potential storage sites in mainland France.
