Switzerland and Norway have officially signed a world-first bilateral agreement to cooperate on cross-border CO₂ storage and the regulated trade in negative emissions, setting a new precedent in international climate policy and carbon markets.
This agreement marks the first operational framework under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement that enables two countries to transfer certified carbon dioxide removals (CDRs) and stored emissions through Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs). The deal is seen as a major innovation in climate diplomacy and commercial decarbonisation.
Key Highlights of the Agreement
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Permanent CO₂ Storage in Norway: Swiss companies will be able to export captured CO₂ for permanent geological storage in Norway’s North Sea infrastructure, primarily through the Northern Lights project.
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Paris-Aligned CDR Trading: The agreement formalizes the state-recognized exchange of negative emissions, the first of its kind, enabling both countries to count removals toward their respective national climate targets.
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Coverage: Applies to CO₂ of fossil, biogenic, or atmospheric origin, including removals via Direct Air Capture (DAC), bioenergy with CCS (BECCS), and verified nature-based solutions.
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Governance: Operates under full compliance with the EU CCS Directive and the London Protocol, using third-party verification and tracking systems to ensure environmental integrity.
Strategic Importance for Switzerland
Due to limited domestic geological storage capacity, Switzerland has sought international partners to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors such as:
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Cement and lime production
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Waste incineration
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Aviation and industrial heat
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The agreement provides long-term access to Norway’s extensive CO₂ storage infrastructure, helping Switzerland move toward its net-zero 2050 goal, as set by the Climate and Innovation Act.
“CO₂ storage will be important for Switzerland on the way to the net-zero target. This technology complements our existing instruments for decarbonisation,”
— Albert Rösti, Swiss Federal Councillor
Norway as a Global CCS Leader
With nearly three decades of experience in CO₂ storage, Norway offers:
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Mature infrastructure like Sleipner and Snøhvit
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World-leading regulatory frameworks
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Capacity to support large-scale imports of CO₂ from Europe
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“This is a pioneering agreement. We are testing how international cooperation on CCS and CDR can work in practice, in line with the Paris Agreement,”
— Terje Aasland, Norwegian Minister of Energy
Early Market Implications
Initial pilot trades between private companies are already underway, with Swiss and Norwegian firms trialing small volumes of CO₂ removals to validate accounting, transport, and verification systems.
ENCOSE anticipates that this model may soon be replicated across Europe, especially as industries and states accelerate net-zero compliance and seek cost-efficient, scalable decarbonisation solutions.
Policy Outlook
This agreement establishes a regulatory and market template for:
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Cross-border carbon removals
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Verified CO₂ storage as a traded commodity
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Bilateral decarbonisation accounting under Article 6
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It also aligns closely with future CBAM and EU ETS2 mechanisms, which may increasingly rely on recognized negative emissions for compliance flexibility.