Safety first

På dansk

For the past 40 years, Evida has operated the Danish methane gas network with a focus on high safety. When Evida helps to establish, develop, and operate a CO₂ pipeline infrastructure, citizens and authorities can feel confident that it will be done with equally high safety.

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Safe CO₂ Transport

As with all other infrastructure, CO₂ pipelines and facilities must be safe. This applies both during construction and when they are in the ground.

Constant monitoring
Evida currently monitors the existing gas infrastructure around the clock, year-round, from its control center. This will also be the case with the CO₂ infrastructure.

Evida currently has a good safety collaboration with local emergency services regarding the natural gas network, and this will be expanded to include the CO₂ pipeline infrastructure.

Design for high safety
High safety can be designed into the planning and construction of CO₂ pipeline infrastructure. Here are some examples:

CO2 pipelines will be underground

The pipes will be buried between 1 and 1.5 meters below the surface. This reduces the risk of ruptures and CO2 leaks.

Routing will consider people, nature, and terrain

We will find the least disruptive route for the pipes to minimize inconvenience. Additionally, transporting CO2 at low pressure near densely populated areas can ensure that any gas leak is limited if a rupture occurs.

CO2 pipelines will be made of steel

Steel is a very strong material, and experience from the natural gas network shows that damage to steel pipes is very rare. CO2 transported at high pressure will be transported in steel pipes with extra thick walls, and in special areas, the trench will be reinforced with cement barriers.

Pipes will be laid in sections with automatic safety valves between them

The safety valves close automatically if the pressure in the pipe drops, which can indicate a leak. This ensures that any gas leak is limited if a break occurs.

Two- and three-dimensional calculation of all pipelines

Two-dimensional calculations are supplemented by three-dimensional calculations when dealing with complex terrain or pipelines near inhabited areas. This way, Evida has a complete overview of, for example, elevation differences in the terrain and can take the necessary precautions during pipeline construction.

Compressor Stations with extra physical security

A CO2 pipeline will have a compressor station as a hub, and unlike the pipeline, it will be above ground. This increases the requirements for physical security with security fences to prevent unauthorized access. Inside the building, there will be sensors and video surveillance to immediately detect any CO2 leak and shut down the entire system to limit the leak.

Weather Stations to assist emergency services

CO2 is a heavy gas and will generally spread along the ground in all directions from a rupture if there is no wind. Wind, however, can move the CO2. Weather stations along the CO2 pipelines can provide Evida and local emergency services with important real-time information on how a CO2 leak is developing, enabling the optimal response.

Questions & Answers

Here you will find answers to some of the questions we encounter about CO₂ and safety

Is CO2 dangerous?

CO2 is all around us and is not immediately dangerous to humans. CO2 cannot burn, like methane, or explode, but it is harmful to health in high concentrations, where it can displace the oxygen in the air we breathe. Therefore, its transport – whether by pipeline, truck, train, or ship – must be handled safely. Just as is done today with many other liquids and gases that can pose a health risk.

Is it safe to transport CO2 in pipelines?

CO2 will be transported in underground steel pipes. In Denmark, we have 40 years of experience transporting natural gas and biogas in steel pipes. The experience is that damage to steel pipes is very rare. There will be many layers of safety when we plan, construct, and operate CO2 pipelines to prevent damage and accidents.

How do you ensure the pipes are safe?

There will be many layers of safety when we plan, construct, and operate CO2 pipelines to prevent damage and accidents.

Safety is considered from the planning stage of a pipeline. The routing will take into account people, nature, and terrain to choose the best route.

The pipe itself will be made of steel and be extra reinforced where necessary. The pipes will be divided with safety valves that close automatically if the pressure drops.

When the pipelines are in operation, they will be monitored from a control center year-round.

What is the risk of leaks from the pipelines?

In Denmark, we have 40 years of experience transporting natural gas and biogas in steel pipes. The experience is that damage to steel pipes is very rare.

In the USA and Canada, there is decades of experience operating thousands of kilometers of CO2 pipelines. And when comparing the American CO2 pipeline infrastructure with the European natural gas network, as the Danish Gas Technology Center does in the study ‘Safety in CO2 logistics’, there are proportionally no more incidents.

What happens if a CO2 pipe leaks?

The amount of CO2 that escapes from a pipe in the event of a break can affect the potential health risk. In the most densely populated areas, where CO2 suppliers such as combined heat and power plants and waste incineration plants are often located, and where CO2 will be transported in smaller pipelines at low pressure, a CO2 leak will be very limited.

CO2 is a heavy gas and will generally spread along the ground in all directions from a rupture if there is no wind. Wind, however, can move the CO2 in a specific direction or cause it to dissipate into the atmosphere. CO2 will gradually mix with the surrounding air, reducing its concentration.

CO2 transport in pipelines

Read more about how Evida is designing the CO2 infrastructure of the future.

Contact Evida CO2

Evida can establish, own, and operate pipeline infrastructure to transport CO2 for storage or utilization in PtX plants.