DNV, an independent energy expert and assurance provider, has been appointed Independent Certifier for the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP), the CO2 transport and storage project underpinning the UK’s East Coast Cluster. Selected by NEP, an international joint venture, with approval from the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), DNV will verify that the project’s construction and operation comply with the carbon dioxide transport and storage license (CO2 T&S License) granted by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.
NEP will transport CO2 captured from industrial emitters in Teesside for permanent storage beneath the southern North Sea. DNV’s scope spans the full transport chain, from receipt of CO2 at the compression facility, through conditioning to dense phase, to the offshore pipeline and injection system. The certification process will establish the documented evidence required to demonstrate compliance and support a safe transition from construction to operation.
The Independent Certifier function is a new regulatory requirement for the UK’s Carbon capture and storage (CCS) sector, providing objective, evidence‑based assurance that nationally significant CO2 transport and storage infrastructure meets its license obligations before entering operation. Its introduction aligns with wider European and UK trends that emphasize the need for robust governance around CCS deployment. This aligns with DNV’s latest Energy Transition Outlook (ETO) forecast, which identifies Europe as one of the world’s two largest CCS regions by 2060, responsible for 23% of all captured and stored CO2 globally – further highlighting the strategic importance of establishing enabling infrastructure with robust governance and operational integrity in early projects.
“Independent certification provides regulators and project partners with confidence that complex CO2 transport infrastructure has been delivered in accordance with its license requirements,” said Hari Vamadevan, Senior Vice President and Regional Director for the UK & Ireland, Energy Systems at DNV. “For NEP, this means verifying design integrity, construction quality and commissioning readiness, so that when CO2 first flows, the system performs as intended. Our role is to provide objective, evidence-based assurance grounded in decades of North Sea verification experience and technical expertise in CO2 pipeline integrity and risk management.”
“Independent certification plays a crucial role in the delivery of the UK’s first and largest CO2 transportation and storage asset, helping to provide confidence that this nationally significant infrastructure is being developed to the highest standards of safety, quality and technical assurance,” said Rich Denny, Managing Director, Northern Endurance Partnership. “DNV brings extensive experience in carbon capture and storage projects internationally, and that expertise will be invaluable as we continue to work collaboratively to support the safe and successful delivery of the Northern Endurance Partnership.”
