The Role of Carbon Capture and Storage in the Journey to Net Zero
The last decade has seen an increase in the global focus on carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, and its potential role in helping to address the global climate crisis. What does CCS technology mean? CCS technology is a three-step process that involves, capturing carbon dioxide, transporting it from where it was produced and storing it deep underground in geological formations.
CCS is being pushed by companies and national governments as the optimal, global solution to address climate change. Over the last few years, the US has hyped CCS by allotting billions of dollars to it and issuing tax credits to CCS-related projects. These projects include: the Bipartisan Infrastructural Law (BIL) and Inflation Reduction Act - huge investments made by the US government towards achieving the net zero target.
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The Role of CCS in Addressing Climate Change
We have seen the devastating effects of climate change on our planet: changing weather patterns and the disruption of the normal balance of nature. The climate targets set by the UN may appear quite ambitious, however the reason is obvious[1]?. Global CO2 emissions are at a very critical level, with figures showing a six-fold increase since 1950. There is an urgent, imperative need to address this and take decisive action to keep the earth’s temperature within 1.5?C above preindustrial times. CCS technology appears very promising as a solution for cutting down carbon emissions and reducing emissions has been at the forefront of the agenda. But ho-w much of this global challenge can CCS address, given its limitations and the concerns about the maturity of the technology? Does it really hold the key to achieving zero emissions?
Many countries, including the petrostates have committed?to the UN's net zero target by 2050. However, the world is nowhere near achieving?zero emissions. So, what is the way forward? There were renewed calls to cut carbon emissions and phase out fossil fuels during the just concluded United Nations climate change conference (COP28) in Dubai. Several countries, businesses, activists, think-thanks, lobby groups and others who have been pushing for the phase-out of fossil fuels (which are a big contributor to global warming and climate change) were well represented.?
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COP28 and the Fossil Fuels Decision
There was a faceoff between officials of the International Energy Association (IEA) and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) during COP28, over the proposed role of CCS technology in the reduction of emissions from fossil fuels. This is clear evidence of how critical the conversations around this subject have become. The COP28 deal has been hailed ‘historic’ as this was the first-time reducing fossil fuel usage has been cited in a UN climate change agreement in about 30 years of climate consultations. The deal made a call for a transition away from fossil fuels, rather than the call for an outright phase-out that the majority desired. Despite the views of sceptics on the presence of evident loopholes in the agreement, the decision to move away from fossil fuels has opened a door to further decisions on the production and use of fossil fuels.
Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) has been listed on the COP28 agreement as one of the technologies critical to achieving net zero by 2050. For it to meet these expectations, there would have to be huge efforts by governments, investors and industrial players to scale the CCUS industry. Annual carbon emissions need to be reduced by billions of metric tonnes. To achieve this magnitude of reduction, CCS usage will need to scale by up to a thousand-fold of current usage. IEA has predicted that to realise net zero emissions by 2050, capture must rise to 1 billion metric tonnes and 6 billion metric tonnes annually in 2030 and 2050 respectively. Even under this extremely ambitious scenario, carbon capture would account for a meagre 10% of collective emissions drops between the years 2022 and 2050.
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Is CCS the Magic Bullet in Reducing Carbon Emissions?
Is carbon capture really the key to the required drastic reduction in CO2 emissions? There are several schools of thought on the subject. Some feel CCS is a scam; others are worried about having CO2 buried underground in long-term storage. Equally of concern, is how long the “long-term” would be. Considering the toxicity of CO2, could it turn to be a case of sitting on a time bomb. There are so many questions that come to mind regarding the efficiency of CCS in addressing the issue of climate change and global warming:
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Many industry experts have predicted that CCUS would be required to decarbonise heavy industries but the technology has struggled to find a footing. The combination of unresolved constraints and challenges CCUS poses, are enough to conclude that it may not be the silver bullet to achieve net zero emissions just yet. The positives are that governments, industry commitments, technology innovations and demand for green/sustainable products will drive CCUS scale.
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ESG/Environmental Manager
1 年Personally, I believe carbon capture is a promising technology. However, the matter of scaling up to realize the global net zero ambition is a big issue. Until this (and other issues) are resolved, I really don't see carbon capture on its own being the answer to net zero emissions in 2050.