CO2 enhanced oil recovery by using newly synthesized CO2 philic surfactant as CO2 mobility control agent is reported. Nonyl phenol ethoxylate sulphonate (NPES) was prepared by the esterification of alcohol with maleic anhydride followed by its sulphonation. Effect of interfacial tension (IFT) between CO2 and brine using NPES was investigated to verify the CO2 philicity of the surfactant. The detailed account of effects of pressure and temperature on IFT between CO2/brine in the presence and absence of surfactant on specified pressure and temperature conditions is studied and discussed. NPES effectively lowered the IFT between CO2/brine (30 mN/m) to less than 5.23 mN/m. Foam quantity was improved by using betaine as foam booster. The static foam endurance properties in the presence and absence of oil were also examined prior to the actual performance test of surfactants using a reservoir core plug sample. It was noted that the foam stability was 900 s in the presence of oil at 90 °C in CO2 environment. The effect of foam by using synthesized NPES on mobility of CO2 is also presented. The CO2 mobility reduction factor was found to be 3.1. It is concluded that NPES has great potential for CO2-EOR applications. © 2015, The Author(s).