The Bundeskartellamt, Germany's competition authority, has stated that it does not have any competitive concerns regarding two proposed CO2 pipeline cooperation projects involving Open Grid Europe GmbH (OGE) and other gas transmission operators. OGE, which operates the largest gas pipeline network in Western Germany, is planning to construct a CO2 pipeline in collaboration with ONTRAS Gastransport GmbH and another pipeline with Belgian company Fluxys S.A.

OGE sought guidance from the Bundeskartellamt due to the significant investment required for these projects, which is expected to be in the single-digit billion range. Andreas Mundt, the president of the Bundeskartellamt, indicated that there is no expectation that the involved companies would pursue competing CO2 pipeline projects independently in the coming years, thus alleviating antitrust concerns regarding the cooperation.

However, Mundt emphasized that the companies must adhere to antitrust laws during their collaboration, as they are considered competitors in other areas. The cooperation should only extend as far as necessary for the realization of the projects.

The planned CO2 pipelines are part of a broader initiative to capture and store CO2 emissions from industrial processes, particularly in waste incineration and cement production. The pipelines will transport captured CO2 to existing and planned offshore long-term storage sites under the North Sea and the Danish mainland.

In the collaboration between OGE and ONTRAS, the companies plan to build an export pipeline from regions with high emissions to potential export locations, with each company responsible for a section of the pipeline. In the project with Fluxys, OGE will construct a pipeline system from West and South Germany to the German-Belgian border, where Fluxys will then build a transit pipeline through Belgium to Zeebrugge.

As the projects are still in their early stages, the Bundeskartellamt noted that market conditions in CO2 transport are evolving rapidly, which may necessitate a reevaluation of certain aspects of the cooperation in the future. If demand for CO2 transport services increases significantly, competing pipeline projects could emerge, requiring closer scrutiny under antitrust laws.