Carbon Capture and Storage and the National Energy and Climate Plans

The document argues that large-scale deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) is essential for the EU to reach climate neutrality by 2050, with estimates suggesting a need to capture between 490 and 600 million tonnes of CO2 annually by that date. It highlights that current deployment is significantly below the required trajectory due to inadequate policies and a lack of storage sites outside the North Sea. The brief advocates for the development of shared CO2 transport and storage 'hubs' and cross-border networks to reduce costs for industrial emitters, particularly in Southern, Central, and Eastern Europe. It specifically urges EU Member States to use the 2023-2024 NECP revision process to detail funding commitments, deployment targets, and storage capacity to align with the Net Zero Industry Act's target of 50 million tonnes of annual injection capacity by 2030.

• Scientific consensus indicates that large-scale deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) is necessary for Europe to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, with annual capture requirements estimated between 490 million tonnes (European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change) and 600 million tonnes (European Commission).
• Current CCS deployment is lagging behind the necessary trajectory; while over 30 commercial facilities operate globally storing about 50 million tons of CO2 annually, the lack of effective carbon pricing and regulatory measures has hindered progress.
• CCS is presented as a cost-effective option for decarbonizing hard-to-abate industrial sectors such as cement, steel, refinery crackers, and waste-to-energy; for instance, using CCS for low-carbon cement and steel would increase bridge construction costs by only 1% while reducing emissions by more than half.
• There is a significant geographic imbalance in CO2 storage development, with projects in the North Sea (including Norway and the UK) accounting for over 130 Mt/year by 2030, compared to only about 12 Mt/year in non-North Sea regions like the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Croatia, and South-West France.
• Relying on a small number of storage sites increases costs for European industrial manufacturers and consumers; developing more storage sites across more EU Member States could reduce overall costs by up to three times.
• The development of shared CO2 transport and storage 'hubs' and cross-border networks is critical for industries in countries without suitable domestic geology, as seen in the Netherlands' use of public-private partnerships like Porthos and Aramis.
• The Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA) establishes a target for an operational injection capacity of 50 million tonnes of CO2 per year in the EU by 2030 and requires countries to disclose where storage sites can be permitted.
• While 20 Member States mentioned CCS in their 2019-2020 NECPs, only three developed dedicated strategies and funding; the 2023-2024 revision is viewed as a critical window for states to provide specific data on process emissions, storage capacity, and public funding.

APA

Clean Air Task Force (n.d.). Carbon Capture and Storage and the National Energy and Climate Plans. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/28042046/CATF_NECP_CCS_PolicyBrief.pdf

Chicago

Clean Air Task Force. Carbon Capture and Storage and the National Energy and Climate Plans. n.d. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/28042046/CATF_NECP_CCS_PolicyBrief.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Clean Air Task Force |title=Carbon Capture and Storage and the National Energy and Climate Plans |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/28042046/CATF_NECP_CCS_PolicyBrief.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cleanairtaskforcendcarbon, author = {{Clean Air Task Force}}, title = {{Carbon Capture and Storage and the National Energy and Climate Plans}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/28042046/CATF_NECP_CCS_PolicyBrief.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }