Aker Solutions has signed an agreement with Microsoft to advance the maturity, bankability and delivery of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) projects across the globe.

Under the agreement, Aker Solutions will engage with developers, emitters, transport and storage providers, industry stakeholders and governments to support project development, reduce execution risk, strengthen investment readiness, including potential CDR credits, and accelerate progress towards final investment decisions (FID).

The collaboration combines Microsoft’s expertise in digital technologies, data, artificial intelligence (AI), monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV), and carbon markets with Aker Solutions’ techno-economic advisory services and end-to-end engineering, procurement, and construction capabilities.

As selected CCS and CDR projects progress towards FID, the companies will provide integrated engineering and execution support, offering developers a single pathway from early-stage feasibility through to operations.

“Many carbon capture and removal projects face similar challenges as they move from concept to reality. As the market matures, success will depend on strong collaboration across the value chain. Joining forces with Microsoft, we aim to help project developers navigate complexity, strengthen business cases, and support the next wave of CCS and CDR projects,” says Kjetel Digre, CEO at Aker Solutions.

Microsoft has pledged to become carbon negative by 2030 and remove its historical emissions by 2050. To meet these ambitions, the company has helped scale the market for durable carbon dioxide removal through long-term purchasing agreements and transparently sharing its learnings.

“Microsoft supports collaborations that look holistically across the entire value chain, connecting physical infrastructure with trusted data, AI and digital MRV to help projects reduce risk, and move from ambition to execution. We are working with Aker Solutions to bring these complementary capabilities together and help accelerate credible CCS and carbon removal projects globally,” says Darryl Willis, corporate vice president, energy and resources at Microsoft.

The signing of the agreement took place at ONS in Stavanger, Norway.