Sinopec starts CCUS cooperation initiative

Sinopec and several international partners used a CCUS conference in Astana, Kazakhstan, to launch a new cooperation initiative aimed at low-carbon energy development and cross-border work on carbon capture, utilization and storage. The announcement was made during the 2026 International CCUS Technology Conference, held on Sept. 1-2 and publicized by Sinopec and PR Newswire on Sept. 4. The partners named in the launch were Sinopec, the International CCUS Technology Innovation & Cooperation Organization, Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry and the Institute of New Materials and Energy Technologies at Nazarbayev University. The move adds another layer to Sinopec’s effort to place itself inside international carbon-management networks rather than only domestic demonstration projects. Company and conference materials said the initiative calls for deeper technical cooperation, participation in standards-setting and more exchanges among specialists working in CCUS. Tian Hongbin, vice president of Sinopec Group, said global climate action had entered a “critical phase” and described CCUS as a key enabling technology. (prnewswire.com) ### Who actually launched the initiative in Astana? Astana was the site where the four named parties unveiled what English-language materials called the “Initiative for Cooperation on Low-Carbon Energy Development.” PR Newswire’s Sept. 4 release said Sinopec joined ICTO, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy and Nazarbayev University’s INMET center in launching the effort during the conference. Sinopec’s own conference report listed the same co-hosts and said the event was designed to deepen international exchanges on CCUS and support a green, low-carbon energy transition. (prnewswire.com) More than 230 representatives from government departments, international organizations, universities, research institutes and companies attended, according to Sinopec’s Sept. 3 Chinese-language account of the meeting. That account said participants came from dozens of countries and regions. ### What did the partners say the initiative is supposed to do? The initiative is framed around coordination rather than a single plant, pipeline or financing package. (prnewswire.com) PR Newswire’s release said it is meant to strengthen international collaboration on CCUS technology development, advance technical standards and expand knowledge-sharing across the sector. Sinopec’s conference report said the document called on participants to deepen technology cooperation, take part in standards-setting and strengthen personnel exchanges. (sinopec.com) Tian said Sinopec would continue supporting ICTO as a global network of experts and would deepen international cooperation across the CCUS sector, according to the release. That language places the emphasis on institution-building and industry coordination rather than announcing immediate capital spending. (prnewswire.com) ### How does this fit with Sinopec’s existing CCUS work? Sinopec used the announcement to point to operating assets and demonstration projects already in China. The Sept. 8 German-language PR Newswire version said the company has built China’s first 100-kilometer dense-phase CO2 pipeline and the country’s first integrated CCUS demonstration project with annual capacity of 1 million tonnes. Sinopec’s conference report also said the company is advancing two large-scale CCUS application bases in the Bohai Bay Basin and the Yangtze River Delta. (prnewswire.com) Those project references matter because they give Sinopec a technical record to bring into the international forum it is helping organize. The company said ICTO itself was established in July 2025 under the guidance of the China Association for Science and Technology, with founding members from more than 20 countries and regions. ### Why was Kazakhstan part of the launch? Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry and Nazarbayev University were not side participants; they were listed as co-launching parties and co-hosts of the conference. (prnewswire.com) Sinopec’s English-language site said the two-day meeting in Astana was jointly hosted by ICTO, China Petrochemical Corporation, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy and INMET of Nazarbayev University. (sinopec.com) The launch therefore put a Chinese state energy group, a Kazakh government ministry, a university research center and an international CCUS organization on the same platform. That structure matches the initiative’s stated focus on standards, research exchange and cross-border industrial cooperation. (sinopec.com) ### What comes next after the Astana conference? ICTO is the clearest vehicle for next steps after the Sept. 1-2 conference. Sinopec and PR Newswire said the company would keep supporting the organization’s development and work with its members on cooperation across the CCUS sector. Conference materials said the initiative’s immediate agenda includes technical cooperation, standards participation and personnel exchange among the organizations involved. (prnewswire.com) Sinopec’s own reporting also said Tian inspected the Silleno project in Atyrau during the Kazakhstan trip and received updates from company units in Astana. Those meetings, held alongside the conference, point to the next phase being follow-up project work and institutional coordination rather than a separate public launch event. (sinopec.com) (prnewswire.com)