Geoscience Challenges and Opportunities Associated with Trapping Mechanism in CO2 Sequestration Projects in Malay Basin, Malaysia

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) can help Malaysia meet its carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) reduction commitment cost-effectively. However, there are challenges in the geologic mapping of the storage capacity. In the Malay basin, promising candidates for CCS are both to-be-depleted fields and saline aquifers. To store CO2 in geologic formations and abundant reservoirs require robust subsurface understandings and specific geoscience knowledge which can help in safeguarding the value of CCS by identifying effective trapping containment, finding prolific reservoirs, and designing a Measurement, Monitoring, and Validating (MMV) plan. The challenges for CCS subsurface assessment include data availability and quality, lack of regional comprehensive study as well as a quantitative estimate of storage capacity. This paper will not only discuss these challenges with specific examples but also bring insight into several opportunities and a way forward to transform the challenges into opportunities for CCS potentials in the Malay Basin. With the focus on combining the quantitative estimates of geological subsurface CO2 retention and surface CO2 leakage, the results suggest that geological storage of CO2 can be a secure carbon-neutral option, but we note that the long-term behavior of CO2 in the subsurface remains a key uncertainty.