[Brussels, 27 November] – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen vowed to publish a new Clean Industrial Deal in the first 100 days of her new mandate. The Deal will be crucial to ensuring not only that European industries can decarbonise, but also create the conditions necessary for them to remain in Europe.
As the EU faces industrial decline – with hundreds of thousands of jobs being lost – and the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050 on the horizon, the Clean Industrial Deal is tasked with the dual ambition of reversing deindustrialisation and accelerating decarbonisation. CCUS technologies emerge as crucial solutions to both these challenges: As stated at the Clean Transition Dialogue[1] in March, reversing deindustrialisation while reaching climate targets is not possible without investing in carbon capture. Therefore, the Clean Industrial Deal must cover CCUS.
The Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA) – the largest European CCUS trade association, representing more than 120 members across the value chain – praises the European Commission for its strong support for CCUS deployment. The introduction of important pieces of EU legislation, such as the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy, outline clear objectives for the deployment of CCUS. Similarly, the Innovation Fund backs many CCUS projects across the EU. However, more needs to be done. If we do not want to lag behind countries forging ahead, like China or the United States, the EU needs to close the funding gap for CCS projects, which, according to the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy, could reach €10 billion by 2030[2].
Olivia Powis, CCSA CEO, said:
“Congratulations to the new College of Commissioners on their appointments, with special recognition to Executive Vice-Presidents Ribera and Séjourné, as well as Commissioners Hoekstra and Jørgensen. We look forward to close cooperation and collaboration in support of delivering an effective Clean Industrial Deal.”
“To reverse Europe’s deindustrialisation and reach net zero, the European Union must increase support in a stable and supportive environment for large-scale investments in clean technologies like CCUS. CCUS is the ace up our sleeve for a cleaner, competitive future. Time to deal it in by putting CCUS at the heart of the Clean Industrial Deal: let’s make this the moment we lead the world in building a clean, industrial powerhouse.”
About the CCSA
CCUS, or Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage, is a key low carbon solution – vital to meeting the UK’s statutory Net Zero target at least cost. CCUS enables industrial decarbonisation as well as the production of clean power, clean products (such as cement and chemicals) and clean hydrogen – which can also be used to decarbonise industry. In addition, CCUS also enables greenhouse gas removal from the atmosphere through Direct Air Capture with Storage (DACS) or Bioenergy with CCS (BECCS).
The CCSA is the trade association accelerating the commercial deployment of CCUS, with offices in Brussels and London. We work with members, governments and other organisations to ensure CCUS is developed and deployed at the pace and scale necessary to meet net zero goals and deliver sustainable growth across regions and nations.
The CCSA currently has over 120 member companies who are active in exploring and developing different applications of carbon capture and removals, CO2 transportation by pipeline and ship, utilisation, geological storage, and other permanent storage solutions, end-users in the power, industry, waste management, fuels, and hydrogen production sectors, plus supply chain, engineering, construction and management, legal and financial consulting sectors.
For media enquiries please email press@ccsassociation.org
References:
(1) – (European Commission). (2024). The clean transition dialogues – stocktaking / A strong European industry for a sustainable Europe. Retrieved from https://commission.europa.eu/publications/clean-transition-dialogues-stocktaking-strong-european-industry-sustainable-europe_en on 27 November 2024.
(2) – (European Commission). (2024). Industrial Carbon Management Strategy. Retrieved from https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52024DC0062 on 27 November 2024.
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