Will Lybster in Caithness See CO₂ Storage Eventually Get A Licence

23rd August 2025

Since 2024 the Scottish Government has been considering if a site off the coast at Lybster could become a place to store CO₂.

There are a few realistic licensing routes being explored for a Lybster in-shore CO₂ store off the Caithness coast.

Here's what's on the table, based on the Scottish Government's Lybster CO₂ Storage short-life working group (SLWG) papers and current law.

Why Lybster matters

Independent work for the Scottish Government concluded Lybster is (currently) the only commercially viable CO₂ store within 12 nautical miles of Scotland's coast ("in-shore/territorial sea"), so it needs a route that fits Scottish licensing powers, while staying interoperable with the UK offshore regime.

Possible licensing/consenting proposals

Scottish Ministers as the licensor, with technical services from NSTA (agency/MoU model)

Under the Energy Act 2008 and Scottish Regulations (2011), Scottish Ministers are the licensor for CO₂ storage within the territorial sea (≤12 nm). The SLWG considered using the North Sea Transition Authority's (NSTA) established processes under an agreement so Scotland doesn’t have to duplicate systems.
Legislation.gov.uk
ClimateXChange
nstauthority.co.uk

Hybrid model (Scottish licence + NSTA stewardship interfaces)

Scottish Ministers issue the storage licence/permit; NSTA processes and public registers are used for stewardship, data and transparency (mirroring the UKCS approach). This keeps Lybster aligned with UK offshore practice and simplifies operator compliance.
nstauthority.co.uk
+1

Conversion/transition from the existing Lybster oil licence to CO₂ storage

Lybster was an oil field drilled onshore to offshore; work is needed to close or vary any petroleum licence and transition the acreage to a CO₂ storage authorisation. The ClimateXChange work flags this specifically for Lybster.
keyfactsenergy.com
ERA

"Pilot first" permitting pathway

SLWG minutes indicate a staged approach could be used: initial appraisal permit → limited-scope pilot injection → scale-up to full storage permit, using the NSTA/EU-model lifecycle adapted for Scottish waters.

Integrated consents "stack" for in-shore storage

Whatever licence route is chosen, the project would still need:

Crown Estate Scotland seabed lease (property rights);

Marine licence (Marine Scotland) for works in the sea;

Environmental permits (SEPA) for monitoring/discharges;

Planning/onshore works consents for any landfall facilities.

SLWG actions include clarifying how the storage licence interacts with the marine licence.
Scottish Government

Alignment with the evolving UK transport & storage (T&S) licence framework

The UK Government has started issuing T&S licences for offshore clusters under the Energy Act 2023. While Lybster sits in devolved waters, proposals include aligning commercial and regulatory terms (e.g., heads-of-terms, permit conditions) so cross-border networks can connect to Lybster without regulatory friction.
GOV.UK

What the SLWG has flagged so far (Aug 2025)
Use the well-tested NSTA/EU model as the procedural backbone, adapted for devolved competence.

Clarify sequencing: petroleum licence closure → Scottish CO₂ storage licence/permit → marine and seabed consents.

Keep data/registers transparent and compatible with the NSTA public register to aid investor confidence.
Scottish Government
nstauthority.co.uk

Practical next steps an operator would expect

Confirm acreage and storage complex boundaries and engage Crown Estate Scotland on leasing.

Apply for a Scottish CO₂ storage licence/permit (with agreed use of NSTA processes, if adopted).

Secure marine licence and environmental permissions; submit monitoring & corrective measures plan.

If relevant, formally surrender/transition any petroleum rights at Lybster.

From the Lybster CO₂ Storage Short-Life Working Group (SLWG)
Documentation regarding community consultation and fishing/navigation—though, noticeably, direct references to these issues are absent in the minutes and summary. Still, we can infer best practices and responsibilities from related marine consultation frameworks.

What the SLWG Covered Directly

A thorough review of the SLWG’s minutes (December 2024, January & February 2025) and their conclusions reveal they focused on licensing, regulatory roles, permits (including marine, safety, and environmental regulators like Marine Scotland, SEPA, HSE, NSTA), and legal frameworks

No explicit mention of community engagement, local fishing stakeholder consultation, or navigation impact discussions appears in those records.

That said, marine licensing consultations would inherently trigger and involve such stakeholder engagement.

Relevant Processes for Community, Fishing, and Navigation (Inferred via Marine Licensing Practice)

When projects require a marine licence in Scotland’s territorial sea, statutory requirements and best practices kick in:

1. Statutory Pre-application Consultation (PAC)

Under the Marine Licensing (Pre-application Consultation) (Scotland) Regulations 2013:

Applicants must notify relevant stakeholders—including local communities, fishing groups, and others.

Hold a public event at least six weeks but no more than a year before their application

2. Early Stakeholder Engagement Best Practices

Authorities advise:

Engaging communities and fishing sectors early, before design decisions are locked in.

Using their input to shape project design and mitigation proposals.

Highlighting feedback loops—showing how input influenced decisions, or why not

3. Navigation Safety Consultations

Applicants should consult navigation authorities:

Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)

Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB)

Other relevant maritime safety stakeholders
to ensure navigational risk assessments, safety mitigation, and emergency response plans are addressed pre-application

Read them minutes of the working group HERE