Offshore NY, NJ, PA, DE, and MD – Mid-Atlantic U.S. Offshore Carbon Storage Resource Assessment Project

The goal of the Mid-Atlantic U.S. Offshore Carbon Storage Resource Assessment Project (Department of Energy Award Number DE-FE0026087) was to assess offshore carbon storage potential for the mid-Atlantic United States (i.e., New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland). Various publicly available data sets were compiled to define geologic characteristics for Cretaceous- and Jurassic-age sandstone sequences of three mid-Atlantic offshore sub-regions: the Georges Bank Basin, the Long Island Platform, and the Baltimore Canyon Trough. Estimates of CO₂ storage capacity indicated a total of 150 to 1136 megatons (Mt), and preliminary reservoir simulations resulted in successful injection of 1 Mt CO₂/year sustained for 30 years in single injection wells. This suggests mid-Atlantic U.S. offshore formations can store decades of CO₂ from industrial sources in the region. Offshore geologic risk factors include soft sediment deformation, unit continuity, sedimentological and structural features, seismicity, and hydrates. CO₂ storage risks include inadequate seals, migration/leakage, and chemical interactions leading to decreased storage. Government, industry, and environmental groups provided addressed next steps needed for future carbon storage project planning and implementation offshore of the mid-Atlantic United States. This project represents an important first step by building the knowledge infrastructure and providing a strong technical basis on which future carbon storage efforts can be built.