Mideast Gulf edges forwards on carbon capture

State energy firms are pinning hopes on the technology to retain long-term competitiveness

State oil giant Saudi Aramco has launched the procurement process for the giant Jubail CCS facility it announced at Cop27 last year, with other Mideast Gulf producers also pinning their hopes on the evolving technologies to insulate themselves from the threats posed by decarbonisation pressures. Aramco CEO Amin Nasser described CCS as the “golden key” to a “viable energy future”—one in which hydrocarbons retain a central role—during the unveiling of the company’s joint development agreement with Germany’s Linde and oilfield services company SLB for the planned Jubail facility, called the Accelerated Carbon Capture and Sequestration (ACCS) project. Nasser has also spoken enthusiastically abou