Project overview

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is a key technology for achieving climate neutrality by reducing industrial CO₂ emissions. The North Sea plays a central role in this transition, offering large geological storage capacities close to major European emission sources. Several large-scale CO₂ storage projects are currently being developed across the region.
Ensuring the safety and reliability of these storage sites is essential. This requires a detailed understanding of natural seismicity and the ability to detect and interpret small seismic events that may be linked to CO₂ injection. Both natural and injection-induced seismicity can affect geological structures near storage sites, and it is therefore crucial to determine event locations and characteristics with high accuracy in order to assess potential impacts on storage integrity. However, current monitoring approaches are fragmented across national borders and often limited in offshore areas, making it challenging to obtain a consistent and reliable picture of seismic activity in the North Sea.

Project aim

SAFE-C aims to improve the safety and reliability of offshore CO₂ storage in the North Sea by advancing seismic monitoring technologies and developing harmonised workflows for the analysis of seismological data. The project will establish a consistent North Sea earthquake catalogue and support transparent communication of seismic information between scientific institutions, industry, regulators and the public.

Project objectives

SAFE-C addresses key challenges in seismic monitoring and risk assessment for CO₂ storage through the following objectives:

• Improve the detection and characterisation of seismic events across the North Sea 
• Harmonise earthquake catalogues and analysis methodologies between countries 
• Develop cost-effective and reliable monitoring strategies for offshore storage sites 
• Strengthen communication and coordination between stakeholders, including authorities, operators and the public

Approach

SAFE-C combines technological innovation, advanced data analysis and stakeholder engagement to deliver a comprehensive monitoring framework. Its key components are:

Monitoring & Technology

The project evaluates and develops monitoring solutions tailored to offshore environments, including ocean-bottom sensors, fibre-optic Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS), and novel posthole seismometers. These technologies are integrated with existing onshore networks to improve detection capabilities and reduce uncertainties.

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Data & Methods

SAFE-C develops advanced workflows for analysing seismological data, including machine-learning-based event detection and discrimination, improved earthquake-location methods, and harmonisation of catalogues across national agencies. Special attention is given to quantifying uncertainties and improving the consistency of seismic information.

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Impact & Stakeholders

The project supports decision-making by providing reliable, timely and understandable information. It also develops communication strategies and recommendations to ensure effective interaction between scientists, industry, regulators and the public, particularly in the case of significant seismic events.

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Case studies

SAFE-C integrates basin-scale monitoring of natural seismicity with site-specific studies at key CO₂ storage locations in the North Sea. These include the Greensand project (Denmark), the Porthos project (Netherlands), and the Horda platform region, which is home to the Northern Lights development (Norway).
By combining regional and local observations, the project improves the understanding of both background seismicity and potential injection-induced events, supporting safer and more efficient storage operations.

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Funding and framework

SAFE-C is funded by the Clean Energy Transition Partnership (CETPartnership) under the Joint Call 2024, a transnational initiative supporting research and innovation for the energy transition. The project contributes to the CCUS call module TRI3, which focuses on carbon capture, utilisation and storage technologies. The CETPartnership’s research projects are co-funded by the European Commission and participating national funding organisations. 

Learn more on:

• CETPartnership
• Transition Initiative TRI3: Enabling Climate Neutrality with Storage Technologies, Renewable Fuels and CCU/CCS