Why CCS is Essential to Climate Goals
The scale of decarbonisation required to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement limiting global warming to 1.5°C is immense. Countries must accelerate their transition to green energy, but even with rapid deployment of renewables, some emissions are unavoidable. Industries such as steel, cement, fertilisers, petrochemicals, and refineries produce high volumes of CO₂ and face limited short-term alternatives. For these hard-to-abate sectors, Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) offers the most viable path to deep decarbonisation. Without CO₂ storage, climate neutrality will remain out of reach.
CCS as Part of a Broader Climate Strategy
CCS must sit alongside renewables, electrification, and energy efficiency as part of a comprehensive climate strategy. The EU’s Industrial Carbon Management Strategy sets ambitious targets: 50 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of CO₂ storage by 2030, scaling to 280 MTPA by 2040 and 450 MTPA by 2050. These figures reflect the growing consensus among global bodies like the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which both include CCS as a core component of their climate mitigation frameworks. CCS is not a future technology, it is available today and already being deployed worldwide.
Gigatonne-Scale Deployment is Needed
Human activity currently emits around 37 gigatonnes of CO₂ per year (International Energy Agency, Global Energy Review 2025), such as from industrial processes and power plants. To reach global climate goals, we need gigatonne-scale deployment of carbon management technologies including CCS and Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR). CCS is essential for decarbonising sectors we cannot live without, and it also provides the foundation for emerging CDR technologies such as bioenergy with CCS (BECCS) and direct air capture with carbon storage (DACCS).
Proven Technology with Broad Applications
CCS is underpinned by decades of research and commercial deployment. Its versatility is evident across sectors: hydrogen and chemicals, fertilisers, iron and steel, cement, bioethanol, waste-to-energy, and power generation. It also plays a role in decarbonising transport fuels and addressing residual emissions in aviation. Power plants equipped with CCS can deliver flexible, low-carbon electricity to complement variable renewable sources like wind and solar. CCS is currently the most viable and in some cases the only solution for reducing emissions from heavy industries that account for nearly 20% of global CO₂ emissions.
