Mitsui’s 2025 Carbon Capture Playbook: Dominating the Global CCUS Market
From Projects to Profits: How Mitsui is Commercializing Carbon Capture in 2025
Mitsui’s Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) strategy has aggressively transitioned from foundational planning to large-scale commercial execution, cementing its role as a pivotal developer in the global decarbonization economy.
- Between 2021 and 2024, Mitsui focused on building a strategic foundation through feasibility studies, memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with majors like Shell and Petronas, and initial investments in promising projects like the UK’s Acorn CCS, setting a corporate target to develop 15 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of CCS capacity by 2035.
- The year 2025 marked a definitive shift to execution with the Final Investment Decision (FID) in April 2025 for the $4 billion Blue Point low-carbon ammonia project in Louisiana, a venture designed to capture 2.3 million metric tons of CO2 per year.
- Beyond capturing industrial emissions, Mitsui is now actively building the demand side of the market by securing offtake agreements for carbon credits, including a five-year deal for J-Credits with NYK Group and large-volume purchases from Direct Air Capture (DAC) leader Climeworks and Direct Ocean Capture (DOC) pioneer Captura.
- This dual approach combines commercially ready point-source capture projects with strategic investments in next-generation technologies like DAC (Heirloom) and e-fuels (Infinium), positioning Mitsui to capitalize on both current and future carbon markets expected to mature in the 2030s.
Mitsui’s CCUS Investment Analysis: Capitalizing on Decarbonization in 2025
Table: Mitsui’s Strategic CCUS Investments (2021-2025)
| Partner / Project | Time Frame | Details and Strategic Purpose | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fervo Energy | December 2025 | Announced an investment in a U.S. startup developing advanced geothermal power. This move aims to secure clean energy sources to power energy-intensive operations, including future decarbonization infrastructure like data centers. | Mitsui & Co. to invest in US geothermal startup, eyeing data … |
| Tangguh UCC Project | November 2024 | Reached a Final Investment Decision (FID) as part of a multi-billion dollar project in Indonesia. The project will deploy Indonesia’s first at-scale CCUS with Enhanced Gas Recovery (EGR), creating value from CO2 injection. | Indonesia’s Tangguh UCC Project Reaches Final … |
| Cygnus CCS Hub | November 2024 | Received an AUD 11 million grant from the Western Australian government. The project, developed with Wesfarmers, aims to create a major CO2 storage hub in the Mid West region. | Driving Western Australia’s CCUS future |
| Aves Carbon Storage Project | October 2024 | Acquired a 10% equity interest in a partnership with Repsol and Carbonvert to develop a significant offshore CO2 storage hub in the Gulf of Mexico, Texas. | Lease Contracts Signed for Carbon Storage Project in … |
| Heirloom Carbon Technologies | June 2025 & December 2024 | Made strategic investments to deepen expertise in Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology. This positions Mitsui for the future carbon removal market, which it expects to become viable in the 2030s. | Capture CO2 from the Atmosphere; DAC Business Outlook … |
| Infinium Holdings | April 2025 | Invested in a U.S.-based developer of e-fuels technology. This supports the creation of sustainable fuels from captured CO2 and renewable hydrogen, aligning with Mitsui’s goals to scale lower-carbon solutions. | Mitsui invests in US e-fuels provider Infinium |
| Twelve | April 2025 | Participated in an $85 million Series C funding round for a company that transforms captured CO2 into chemicals and fuels, creating a utilization pathway and market for captured carbon. | Twelve Secures $85 million in Additional Series C & … |
| Blue Point Project | April 2025 | Made a Final Investment Decision on a low-carbon ammonia project with a total cost of approximately $4 billion. Mitsui’s 25% stake represents a significant capital commitment to large-scale CCUS infrastructure. | JERA Makes Final Investment Decision on “Blue Point” … |
| Storegga Geotechnologies | March 2021 | Acquired a 15.4% share in the lead developer of the Acorn CCS project in the UK, securing a strategic stake in one of Europe’s most advanced large-scale CCS and hydrogen initiatives. | Mitsui invests in carbon capture and storage | 2021 | Topics |
Strategic Alliances: How Mitsui’s Partnerships are Building a Global CCUS Value Chain
Table: Mitsui’s Key CCUS Partnerships (2021-2025)
| Partner / Project | Time Frame | Details and Strategic Purpose | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deep Sky & SMBC | December 2025 | Mitsui’s banking arm, SMBC, partnered with Canadian developer Deep Sky to accelerate the DAC and carbon removal market in Japan, creating a financial and commercial pathway for these technologies. | Deep Sky Announces Strategic Partnership with Sumitomo … |
| PTTEP | October 2025 | Joined Thailand’s first CCS project at the Arthit gas field with a 4.7% stake through subsidiary MOECO. This move establishes a presence in Southeast Asia’s emerging storage infrastructure. | Mitsui & Co Joins Thailand’s First Carbon Capture Project |
| BHP, JFE Steel, et al. | August 2025 | Joined a global consortium to study the feasibility of large-scale CCUS hubs across Asia. This aims to create economies of scale by aggregating CO2 from multiple industrial sources. | Global industry leaders launch CCUS Hub Study to … |
| CF Industries & JERA | April 2025 | Formed a joint venture for the Blue Point low-carbon ammonia plant in Louisiana. Mitsui’s 25% stake secures its role as a key developer and offtaker in a world-scale decarbonized fuel project. | CF Industries Announces Joint Venture with JERA Co., Inc., … |
| Climeworks | April 2025 | Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) signed an agreement to purchase 13,400 tons of CO₂ removal, becoming the first shipping partner for the DAC leader and securing high-quality carbon credits. | Climeworks gains first partner in the shipping inustry: MOL |
| Captura | March 2025 | MOL entered a strategic partnership with a large-volume offtake agreement for carbon removal credits from Direct Ocean Capture (DOC), diversifying its carbon removal portfolio. | Captura announces sale of carbon removal credits and … |
| Repsol & Carbonvert | October 2024 | Formed the Aves Carbon Capture and Storage JV (Mitsui 10% stake) to develop an offshore carbon storage project near Corpus Christi, Texas, securing access to geological storage capacity in a key industrial region. | Lease Contracts Signed for Carbon Storage Project in … |
| Petrobras | March 2024 | Signed an MoU to explore low-carbon opportunities in Brazil, including CCUS and sustainable fuels. This provides a strategic entry point into the South American decarbonization market. | Petrobras and Mitsui & Co. shake hands on low-carbon … |
| Petronas & TotalEnergies | June 2023 | Entered a Joint Development Agreement to establish Malaysia as a regional CCS hub, creating a cross-border CO2 storage solution for industrial emitters across Southeast Asia. | Mitsui Concludes Agreement on the Joint Development of … |
| Shell | September 2022 | Signed a joint agreement to explore the feasibility of large-scale CCUS projects in the Asia Pacific region, leveraging Shell’s technical expertise and Mitsui’s regional presence. | Mitsui and Shell to explore feasibility of carbon capture and … |
Mitsui’s Global CCUS Footprint: From North American Hubs to Asian Decarbonization Corridors
Mitsui is executing a strategically bifurcated geographic strategy, developing large-scale, policy-driven production projects in North America while simultaneously building foundational cross-border storage infrastructure in the high-growth industrial regions of Asia.
- From 2021 to 2024, Mitsui laid the groundwork by exploring opportunities globally, investing in the UK’s Acorn project, and signing MoUs to study storage potential in Indonesia with Pertamina and Malaysia with Petronas, alongside early-stage US projects like Hackberry.
- In 2025, North America became the center for large-scale capital deployment, highlighted by the $4 billion Blue Point low-carbon ammonia plant in Louisiana and the Aves offshore storage project in Texas, clearly capitalizing on the region’s favorable policy environment and established infrastructure.
- Concurrently, Mitsui solidified its Asian hub strategy in 2025 by taking a stake in Thailand’s first operational CCS project at the Arthit gas field and joining a major BHP-led consortium to architect a network of CCUS hubs across Asia.
- The crucial link connecting these regional strategies is the development of a specialized liquefied CO2 (LCO2) shipping fleet by its affiliate Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), which is essential for transporting captured CO2 from industrial nations like Japan to permanent storage sites being established in Australia and Malaysia.
From Feasibility to FID: Analyzing the Technology Maturity of Mitsui’s CCUS Portfolio
Mitsui’s technology strategy has decisively matured from evaluating proven technologies to deploying them at commercial scale, while concurrently making strategic, long-term investments in next-generation carbon removal solutions.
- The period from 2021 to 2024 was characterized by the assessment of mature technologies like post-combustion capture and Enhanced Gas Recovery (EGR) through feasibility studies and partnerships, such as with the Tangguh UCC Project and the Shell MoU.
- 2025 represents the pivot to commercial deployment, with the Final Investment Decision for the Blue Point project validating the commercial readiness of autothermal reforming (ATR) with carbon capture for large-scale, low-carbon commodity production.
- Alongside this, 2025 saw Mitsui build a forward-looking portfolio of emerging technologies, investing in Direct Air Capture (DAC) via Heirloom, Direct Ocean Capture (DOC) through its Captura offtake agreement, and carbon-to-value pathways like e-fuels with Infinium and Twelve, preparing for market viability in the 2030s.
- This is underpinned by a focus on critical enabling technologies, including MOL’s development of LCO2 carriers and Floating Storage and Injection (FSI) units, which are vital for creating a functional and flexible global CCUS value chain.
SWOT Analysis: Mitsui’s Evolving CCUS Strategy
Table: SWOT Analysis of Mitsui’s CCUS Commercial Activities
| SWOT Category | 2021 – 2023 | 2024 – 2025 | What Changed / Resolved / Validated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strengths | Strong legacy energy partnerships (e.g., Shell, Petronas); extensive global trading and logistics expertise. | Vertically integrated portfolio from capture to storage (Blue Point, 1PointFive); tangible FID on a $4 billion mega-project; diverse technology bets (DAC, DOC). | The company transitioned from a strategic investor to a full-stack project developer, validating its ability to execute complex, capital-intensive decarbonization projects. |
| Weaknesses | Portfolio heavily reliant on MoUs and feasibility studies; long project lead times and unclear commercial pathways. | High capital concentration in a few large projects (Blue Point); long-term growth dependent on the commercialization of nascent technologies like DAC. | Risk shifted from exploratory uncertainty to execution risk. The challenge is no longer “if” but “how” to deliver these massive projects on time and budget. |
| Opportunities | Growing global pressure for decarbonization; potential for first-mover advantage in emerging CCUS markets. | Favorable policies in key regions (e.g., U.S. Inflation Reduction Act); maturing carbon credit markets (NYK, Climeworks offtakes); establishing regional dominance in Asian storage hubs. | The market landscape has firmed up, providing clear commercial pathways (e.g., carbon credits, low-carbon commodities) that were previously theoretical. |
| Threats | Regulatory uncertainty, particularly for cross-border CO2 transport; high and unproven cost structures for large-scale CCUS. | Project execution delays (Blue Point commissioning in 2029); intense competition from other energy majors; slower-than-expected cost reductions in DAC technology. | Threats evolved from conceptual (market viability) to operational (competition, delivery, and technology scaling). The race is now against competitors and timelines. |
What to Watch in 2026: Mitsui’s Next Moves in the Global Decarbonization Race
The critical focus for Mitsui is now to convert its vast portfolio of strategic assets and partnerships into operational, cash-generating businesses while successfully navigating the complexities of creating first-of-their-kind cross-border carbon markets.
- The primary milestone to watch is the on-schedule construction and commissioning of the Blue Point ammonia facility, targeted for 2029. Its successful operation will serve as the ultimate validation of Mitsui’s integrated project developer strategy.
- A positive outcome from the BHP-led consortium study on Asian CCUS hubs would be a major catalyst, potentially unlocking massive infrastructure investments and solidifying Mitsui’s central role in the region’s decarbonization architecture.
- The progress of portfolio company Heirloom in reducing the cost of Direct Air Capture is a key indicator for Mitsui’s long-term vision. Reaching commercial viability in the 2030s, as Mitsui anticipates, will depend on near-term technological breakthroughs.
- Keep a close eye on new vessel orders from Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) for its specialized LCO2 carrier fleet. This will be the most direct signal that the cross-border CCUS value chain is transitioning from bilateral agreements to physical reality.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Mitsui’s primary goal in the carbon capture (CCUS) market?
Mitsui’s primary goal is to become a leading developer in the global decarbonization economy by developing 15 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of CCS capacity by 2035. They are achieving this by executing large-scale commercial projects, building a vertically integrated portfolio from capture to storage, and creating demand for carbon credits and low-carbon products.
What is the ‘Blue Point’ project and why is it so important to Mitsui’s strategy?
The Blue Point project is a $4 billion low-carbon ammonia facility in Louisiana, in which Mitsui holds a 25% stake. It is crucial because its Final Investment Decision in April 2025 marked Mitsui’s shift from planning to large-scale commercial execution. Designed to capture 2.3 million metric tons of CO2 annually, it validates their ability to develop capital-intensive decarbonization infrastructure.
What types of carbon capture technologies is Mitsui investing in?
Mitsui is pursuing a dual-technology strategy. They are deploying mature, commercially ready point-source capture for industrial facilities (like the Blue Point project) while also making strategic, long-term investments in next-generation technologies like Direct Air Capture (DAC) with partners Heirloom and Climeworks, and Direct Ocean Capture (DOC) through an offtake agreement with Captura.
How does Mitsui’s CCUS strategy differ between North America and Asia?
In North America, Mitsui is focused on large-scale capital deployment for production projects, such as the Blue Point plant in Louisiana, to leverage favorable policies. In Asia, the strategy is centered on building foundational, cross-border storage infrastructure and hubs (e.g., in Malaysia, Thailand, and Australia) to serve the region’s high-growth industrial economies.
Beyond capturing and storing CO2, how is Mitsui creating a market for carbon management?
Mitsui is actively building the demand side by securing offtake agreements for carbon credits with companies like NYK Group, Climeworks, and Captura. Furthermore, they are investing in ‘carbon-to-value’ pathways by supporting companies like Infinium (e-fuels) and Twelve (CO2-to-chemicals), which create a utilization market for captured carbon.
Experience In-Depth, Real-Time Analysis
For just $200/year (not $200/hour). Stop wasting time with alternatives:
- Consultancies take weeks and cost thousands.
- ChatGPT and Perplexity lack depth.
- Googling wastes hours with scattered results.
Enki delivers fresh, evidence-based insights covering your market, your customers, and your competitors.
Trusted by Fortune 500 teams. Market-specific intelligence.
Explore Your Market →One-week free trial. Cancel anytime.
