Located at the Moomba Gas Plant in South Australia’s northeast, the Moomba Carbon Capture and Storage project is Australia’s first large-scale onshore hub for the capture and geological storage of carbon dioxide (CO2).
As one of the world’s largest and lowest-cost CCS projects, Santos’ Moomba CCS project is designed to store up to 1.7 million tonnes of CO2e per year, depending on availability of CO2e (CO2 equivalent).
Moomba CCS is a world-class, commercial-scale project which captures CO2 emissions at the Moomba Gas Plant and transports and stores the CO2 in depleted reservoirs in the Cooper Basin. These reservoirs are ideal storage sites and have previously stored hydrocarbons for tens of millions of years.
Since start-up in September 2024, Moomba CCS is delivering real emissions reduction for South Australia and Australia.
As of May 2026, Moomba CCS had safely and permanently stored more than 2 million tonnes of CO2e[1] in depleted reservoirs and received more than 1.19 million ACCUs for CO2e injected from start-up to the end of September 2025[2].
Moomba CCS emerged as a key contributor to emissions reduction across Australia’s energy production sector according to the Clean Energy Regulator’s 2024–25 Safeguard Mechanism data insights[3] report which noted, “the successful implementation of carbon capture and storage at the Moomba plant facility has contributed to the reduction in the oil and gas sector’s emissions intensity”.
In the 2024/5 reporting period Moomba CCS stored ~ 1Mt CO2e, equivalent to approximately one-third of the total reduction in Safeguard Mechanism covered emissions versus the prior year.
[1] From project start-up in September 2024 to 30 April 2026.
[2] Total operated ACCUs issued cover the project’s contribution to emissions reduction from its start-up in September 2024 to 30 September 2025.
[3] https://cer.gov.au/document/2024-25-safeguard-mechanism-data-insights
How it works
The Moomba CCS process consists of four main stages:
- CO2 is captured at the Moomba Gas Plant and fed into the main CO2 processing facility where water is removed.
- CO2 is compressed into liquid.
- CO2 is transported 50km via pipeline to a storage site.
- CO2 is safely and permanently stored in depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs.
The animation below illustrates the complete journey of CO2 from capture to injection, specific to the Moomba CCS project.
Monitoring and verification
A monitoring and verification plan, regulated by the South Australian Government, has been developed based on international standards and best practice and includes:
- Data gathering during injection.
- Monitoring movement of CO2 and confirming containment.
- Monitoring the integrity of the wells.
- Environmental assurance.
The monitoring and verification plan confirms the CO2 is being safely stored in the depleted reservoirs.
CCS is considered to be a key pillar of decarbonisation by the International Energy Agency (IEA)[4].
[4] IEA 2025. World Energy Outlook 2025.