Seen as a lasting solution to the global greenhouse gas problem the method of capturing and storing carbon dioxide has already been successfully trialled in Canada and Norway. CO2 extracted from gas production in the Norwegian North Sea is currently being stored 1000m below ground instead of being released into the air.

As energy consumption grows at a rapid rate many developed nations are stepping up their campaigns to find an effective solution to global warming, especially as several of the world’s most populous nations begin to embrace new levels of industrialization.

Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association executive director Barry Jones said yesterday that India and China would account for 80% of the world's growth in energy consumption over the next 10 years, with most of it fired by fossil fuels.

"China by itself is putting in the equivalent of the whole of the Australian electricity grid every year," Jones said.

"Doing this (carbon sequestration) in a big way is probably 10 to 15 years away.”