EU to unveil ambitious European carbon capture strategy

The European Commission is set to present a comprehensive carbon management strategy on 6 February, aimed at capturing up to 450 million tonnes of CO2 annually by 2050. The initiative will also affect the emissions trading system in the future.

To achieve the goal of climate neutrality across the entire European economy by 2050, the strategy proposes capturing at least 50 million tonnes of CO2 annually by 2030, with an interim target of 200 million tonnes by 2040. The ambitious policy was reported by Euractiv.

The EU will present the strategy in early February. It will cover industry and focus on capturing, storing and using CO2. The proposal also addresses less conventional methods of carbon capture, namely directly from the atmosphere. This is expected to contribute to a further 100 to 200 million tonnes of CO2 in savings. A challenge for CCS and CCU technologies is how to use the captured CO2. The primary option is underground gas storage, for example in reservoirs left behind by depleted fossil fuel sources. It is also possible to use CO2 to manufacture goods, such as plastics, medicines or synthetic fuels.

Mandatory CO2 capture and the risk of slower emissions reductions

Countries in the northern parts of Europe are investing primarily in CCS and CCU projects. The North Sea, historically a centre for oil and natural gas production, is a preferred location for large-scale CO2 storage projects because of its substantial storage capacity. Southern Europe is lagging behind, with smaller and less advanced plans. This could affect the geographical distribution of some industries in the future, such as cement production. These sectors will have to capture and store carbon as a legal requirement, and will therefore tend to concentrate in places where this is possible.

The European Commission plans to develop more detailed legislation and support mechanisms for CCS and CCU, including the integration of industrial carbon removals into the emissions trading system. This is currently raising concerns about a possible market collapse.

Critics argue that combining carbon removal mechanisms with the EU ETS could weaken the ETS, as companies might stop focusing on decarbonisation and instead rely on carbon removal later. Some therefore propose allowing emissions removals only for unavoidable residual emissions from agriculture and industry.