Petrobras, Japanese partner work on carbon capture at offshore rigs

Kureha to develop new catalyst to turn byproduct gas into material for batteries, auto parts

A worker walks inside a Petrobras oil rig in the Santos Basin off Rio de Janeiro. Natural gas is a common byproduct at such facilities. © Reuters

RYOSUKE HANAFUSA, Nikkei staff writer

August 20, 2023 08:59 JST

HOUSTON, U.S. -- Japanese chemicals company Kureha will partner with Brazilian state energy group Petrobras to develop a new way to capture carbon dioxide from offshore oil fields.

Kureha will start developing a new catalyst to be used in a carbon capturing device this fiscal year at its research facility in northeastern Japan, in a joint effort with the Hokkaido-based Kitami Institute of Technology. It plans to build a small-scale prototype of the device in fiscal 2024.