Greece approves Prinos CO2 storage project

March 05, 2026

Greece has officially authorized the development of a major carbon capture and storage (CCS) project at the Prinos offshore field, marking a significant step toward building the country’s long-term CO2 storage infrastructure.

The approval was issued by the Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company (HEREMA), granting a long-term permit that confirms the Prinos reservoir’s geological capacity for secure carbon dioxide sequestration. This decision establishes the offshore site as a key component of Greece’s future carbon management strategy.

Long-term permit for the prinos CO2 storage project

The license has been granted to EnEarth Greece, a subsidiary of Energean, after an extensive technical and regulatory review process that began with an exploration permit in 2022. The authorization remains valid for 25 years and covers both the underground storage formation and the necessary infrastructure within the Prinos concession area, located offshore near the city of Kavala.

At the center of the project lies the depleted Prinos oil field together with a deep saline aquifer located roughly two miles beneath the seabed. These geological formations will be used to inject and permanently store captured carbon dioxide. During the first phase of operations, the permitted injection capacity is limited to one million metric tons of CO2 per year.

Regulatory review and EU compliance

The permit follows a comprehensive evaluation of the project’s technical documentation, along with a formal opinion from the Directorate-General for Climate Action. This review confirmed that the development aligns with European Union regulations governing geological carbon storage.

Specialist technical, legal, and engineering consultants also assisted the national regulator during the assessment process to ensure the project meets strict safety and environmental standards.

Next steps before CO2 injection begins

Before operations can commence, the developer must obtain final regulatory approval for detailed operational and safety plans. These include updated monitoring strategies, risk mitigation frameworks, corrective action procedures, and long-term closure and post-closure plans.

The timeline for the first CO2 injections will depend on the completion and approval of these documents.

Strategic role in Europe’s carbon management network

The Prinos CO2 initiative has received financial backing from the European Union through the Recovery and Resilience Facility as well as the Connecting Europe Facility. These investments highlight the project’s importance not only for Greece but also for the broader European carbon management network.

For Greece, the Prinos development represents more than just a storage facility. It is expected to serve as a foundation for a national carbon capture and storage market, providing industries with limited decarbonization options a viable pathway to meet increasingly strict EU climate targets.