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LONDON, July 13, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

NEW REPORT FROM THE ENERGY TRANSITIONS COMMISSION

In its latest report Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage in the Energy

Transition: Vital but Limited, the ETC describes the complimentary role carbon

capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) has alongside zero-carbon electricity,

clean hydrogen and sustainable low-carbon bioresources in delivering a net-zero

economy by mid-century.

Carbon capture, utilisation and storage in the energy transition: Vital but

limited

Massive clean electrification is the backbone of global decarbonisation.

However, electrification, hydrogen and sustainable low-carbon bioenergy

combined cannot reduce gross emissions completely to zero. In addition, it is

almost certain that cumulative CO2 emissions between now and 2050 will exceed

the "carbon budget" consistent with a 1.5°C climate objective. So, to limit

temperature rises to 1.5°C, carbon removals will be required alongside deep and

rapid cuts in emissions.

Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) must therefore play three vital

but limited roles in the energy transition:

To decarbonise those sectors where alternatives are technically limited (e.g.

industrial processes which by their nature produce CO2 such as cement);

To deliver some of the carbon removals that are required in addition to rapid

decarbonisation if global climate objectives are to be achieved;

And to provide a low-cost decarbonisation solution in some sectors and

geographies where CCUS is economically advantaged relative to other

decarbonisation options locally, or captured carbon could be a useful input to

a product.

"As a low-carbon, but not zero-carbon technology, CCUS has a complimentary role

to play in decarbonisation alongside massive clean electrification, hydrogen

and sustainable bioresources. Collective action by government, corporates and

investors is needed now to ensure that CCUS can scale-up and play this vital

but limited role in industrial decarbonisation and deliver some of the carbon

removals essential to keeping 1.5°C alive," Adair Turner, Chair, ETC.

CCUS and the path to net-zero

The ETC's report assesses the roles which CCUS must play on the path to

net-zero and what must happen to ensure it can do so. The key conclusions are:

By 2050, the world will likely need to capture and either use or store 7-10

Gt/year of CO2 (equivalent to circa 18-25% of today's CO2 emissions):

- Of this 3-5 GtCO2/year will be needed to achieve net zero emissions in

industrial and energy applications (such as cement, steel and hydrogen

production) where the use of electricity, hydrogen, or sustainable low-carbon

bioenergy doesn't provide a complete solution to decarbonisation. This use of

CCUS would offset the continued consumption of 9 million barrels per day of oil

(90% lower than today) and 2,700 BCM of gas per year (over 30% lower than

today) while still achieving a zero-emission economy.

- Another 4-5 GtCO2/year will be needed to achieve engineered carbon dioxide

removals.

Provided strong regulations are in place, CCUS can be technically reliable –

achieving CO2 capture rates of 90% and above, and securely locking up carbon

for long durations. This can be achieved at costs which enable it to play an

economically valuable role on the path to net zero.

The current pace of development of CCUS is far short of what is required. This

reflects past confusions about where CCUS is most needed, inadequate

investment, and controversies which have generated public opposition.

A combination of private investment and supporting public policy is required to

ensure that CCUS can play its vital but limited role going forward.

The need to accelerate progress in the 2020s

Today, just 40 Mt/year of carbon dioxide is captured, from around 30

facilities. Growth has been slow with multiple project cancellations. Partly

this reflects improved economics for other routes to decarbonisation but also

policy and coordination failures that must be addressed going forward. Early

deployment in the 2020s is essential to achieve sufficient capacity by 2050 and

reduce overall costs. Much of the growth – particularly of DACC – will occur

after 2030 but significant development in the 2020s is needed to make this

future build-out feasible.

A plausible but ambitious deployment trajectory could see 0.8 GtCO2/year of

carbon capture capacity operating by 2030 across a suite of technologies, at

over 300 facilities. Achieving this will require action from governments and

industry to reduce project development time, develop shared transport and

storage infrastructure and ramp up investment.

Investment in CCUS

The total investment in CCUS infrastructure is estimated at up to $5 trillion

by 2050. This is less than 5% of the total investment needed for the energy

transition and equivalent to 0.1% of projected global GDP over this period. In

the next decade, the bulk of the investment (90%) will be spent on point source

capture, transport and storage, only circa 10% will be DACC related. DACC

investments will however ramp up in subsequent decades.

The majority of CCUS costs are in CO2 capture and typically reflect the

concentration of CO2 in the gas stream, with more diffuse sources (e.g. air)

requiring more energy to isolate the CO2 than higher concentration sources

(e.g. fossil industrial processes). The private sector can finance most of the

costs with both industry and governments playing a role in developing

incentives (e.g. carbon pricing, low-carbon products), and developing shared

transport and storage infrastructure via industrial hubs.

"Recognising that CCUS is one vital tool in the decarbonisation portfolio,

alongside others such as accelerating clean electrification, immediate action

is required by government, corporates and investors to turn plans into reality

and increase the deployment of high capture CCUS in the next decade. Reduced

development time, strong regulation, greater investment and shared

infrastructure models are all essential to make this possible," said Ita

Kettleborough, Director, ETC.

6 Key Actions by Government, Corporates & Finance in the 2020s

Collective action by government, corporates and investors is crucial to

achieving the scale of CCUS needed in the next decade. Six critical actions in

the 2020s are:

Overcoming the green premium to make CCUS deployment economically viable

through e.g. carbon pricing, early-stage financial support where needed -

scaled through a combination of government and industry mechanisms (e.g.

low-carbon product standards, buyer coalitions, procurement mechanisms).

Developing enabling infrastructure such as shared transport pipelines and

storage sites. Government and industry can develop CCUS hubs that enable

economies of scale.

Targeting R&D and deployment support towards high capture, next-generation CCUS

technologies, as well as developing innovative business models, such as Carbon

Capture as a Service.

Regulating and managing risks to ensure responsible and secure CCUS development

by assigning long-term responsibility for storage sites and meaningful

penalties for leakage.

Setting standards and regulation to ensure high CO2 capture rates, alongside

developing transparent, best-practice monitoring of CCUS.

Building public support for CCUS' appropriate role as a low-carbon technology

by articulating a clear strategic, but limited role for CCUS, and transparency

on performance.

To read the full report, visit:

https://www.energy-transitions.org/publications/carbon-capture-use-storage-vital-limited/

Notes to editors

This report constitutes a collective view of the Energy Transitions Commission.

Members of the ETC endorse the general thrust of the arguments made in this

report but should not be taken as agreeing with every finding or

recommendation. The institutions with which the Commissioners are affiliated

have not been asked to formally endorse the report.

For further information on the ETC please visit:

https://www.energy-transitions.org.

For link to the report and infographics, please visit:

https://www.energy-transitions.org/publications/carbon-capture-use-storage-vital-limited/

For a full glossary of terms please see the full report.

CCUS is sometimes associated only with the capture of emissions from fossil

fuel or industrial 'point sources'. However for the purposes of this report, we

include Direct Air Carbon Capture (DACC) and Bioenergy with carbon capture

(BECC) as forms of carbon capture and storage technology. Both of these

technologies can provide negative emissions and are forms of carbon dioxide

removal.

For a full list of supporting quotes, please visit:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11SduXXfC9_5S0hceugDxwCh6GtU3AEII/view?usp=sharing.

To view our full commissioner list, please visit:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nQOEXhK9NVIrUvQ4E7Wpz1VP_VK5QXtM/view?usp=sharing.

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Source: Energy Transitions Commission