A first look at the EU Industrial Carbon Management Strategy

The EU Industrial Carbon Management Strategy aims to scale up CO2 capture, utilisation, and storage to meet 2040 climate targets, specifically targeting an annual injection capacity of at least 250 million tonnes in the European Economic Area by 2040. To achieve this, the Commission plans to address current imbalances in storage—which is currently concentrated in the North Sea—by establishing transparent permitting processes by 2025 and creating an investment atlas of potential storage sites. The strategy also envisions a vast transport network, potentially reaching 19,000 km by 2040, and proposes a regulatory package for CO2 transport and a demand aggregation platform by 2026. Financial mechanisms discussed include the Innovation Fund, Connecting Europe Facility, and a possible Important Project of Common European Interest for transport and storage. Additionally, the strategy emphasizes industrial carbon removals (such as BECCS and DACCS) to help reach a target of removing 400 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2040.

• The EU has set a target for annual CO2 injection capacity of at least 250 million tonnes per year within the European Economic Area by 2040, supplementing a 2030 target of 50 million tons of annual storage capacity established by the Net-Zero Industry Act.
• Current carbon capture and storage development is unevenly distributed, with a high concentration of projects in the North Sea region. To rectify this, the Commission intends to urge Member States to implement transparent permitting processes by 2025 and develop an investment atlas of potential CO2 storage sites.
• The EU anticipates a significant expansion of CO2 transport infrastructure, with projections suggesting the network could grow to 7,300 km by 2030 and 19,000 km by 2040. The Commission plans to address investment risks through a potential CO2 transport regulatory package and a planning mechanism to avoid fragmented infrastructure.
• Significant funding is required for infrastructure, with estimated costs of €12.2 billion by 2030 and €16 billion by 2040 for the transport network, and €3 billion for storage capacity by 2030. The Commission is exploring various funding avenues, including the Innovation Fund, the European Investment Bank, and a possible Important Project of Common European Interest for CO2 transport and storage by the end of 2024.
• Industrial carbon removals, including bio-energy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) and direct air carbon capture and storage (DACCS), are intended to support a broader target of removing 400 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2040.

APA

Pernot, E., Lockwood, T., & Rossi, C. (2024). A first look at the EU Industrial Carbon Management Strategy. Clean Air Task Force. https://www.catf.us/2024/02/a-first-look-at-the-eu-industrial-carbon-management-strategy/

Chicago

Pernot, Eadbhard, Toby Lockwood, and Codie Rossi. A first look at the EU Industrial Carbon Management Strategy. Clean Air Task Force, 2024. https://www.catf.us/2024/02/a-first-look-at-the-eu-industrial-carbon-management-strategy/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Pernot |first1=Eadbhard |last2=Lockwood |first2=Toby |last3=Rossi |first3=Codie |title=A first look at the EU Industrial Carbon Management Strategy |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=15 February 2024 |url=https://www.catf.us/2024/02/a-first-look-at-the-eu-industrial-carbon-management-strategy/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{pernot2024first, author = {Pernot, Eadbhard and Lockwood, Toby and Rossi, Codie}, title = {{A first look at the EU Industrial Carbon Management Strategy}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2024}, month = feb, url = {https://www.catf.us/2024/02/a-first-look-at-the-eu-industrial-carbon-management-strategy/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }