The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has opened its second carbon storage licensing round to allocate 14 locations offshore Scotland and England (United Kingdom) with a potential additional storage capacity of 2 Gt (NSTA press release, 09/12/2025). The offered areas fall into two broad categories: depleted hydrocarbon fields and saline aquifer sites. Selected bidders will be required to obtain a seabed agreement from the either Crown Estate Scotland or The Crown Estate before advancing on their projects. The round will be open until 24 March 2026, expecting to award the licenses in early 2027.
The UK’s first CCS licensing round in September 2023 awarded 21 CCS licenses, among them there are the Endurance (100 MtCO2 off Teesside) and HyNet (100 MtCO2 in Liverpool).
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