Assessing the Potential of Open Saline Aquifer for Carbon Storage in Kuwait

In the 21st Century, climate change remains one of the major global challenges due to the build-up of greenhouse gases (GHG) like carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere from human activities. This causes a temperature rise and can lead to rising sea levels and a wide range of environmental and economic impacts (IPCC, 2023). According to Ritchie and Roser (2020) , CO2 emissions have grown rapidly to over 35 billion tonnes, with the main contributors being the large countries with high populations and industry activities such as China, the United States, and India. When we examine CO2 per capita, the picture changes; smaller countries whose economy depends on hydrocarbon or industrial activities tend to have higher emissions per capita. This brings Kuwait to one of the top CO2 emitters per capita ( McKay, 2024 ). With Kuwait’s economy tied to fossil fuels, Kuwait is adopting effective strategies to reduce its carbon footprint. They have set ambitious goals and plans to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Carbon capture and storage in the subsurface is one of the main pillars for this strategy. The vision is to capture CO2 from power plants, refineries and petrochemical facilities and store it underground. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (2023) has identified high-emission areas in Kuwait and currently needs to find an optimum subsurface storage location.