A draft document revealed that the European Union has prepared plans to capture and store hundreds of millions of tons of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 so that industries can meet Europe's climate change goals. Achieving the EU's target of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 requires companies to transition to green energy and alter their production methods. Sectors lacking the necessary technology will need to capture their remaining emissions to prevent them from entering the atmosphere and contributing to global warming.
By 2050, the EU will need to capture approximately 50 million tons of carbon dioxide annually, according to a draft plan from the European Commission seen by Reuters. The draft states, "By the same deadline, most of the remaining emissions from EU industries will need to be captured and stored, especially from the cement and chemical sectors." Official data shows that the bloc emitted 3.6 billion tons of CO2 equivalent in 2022.
Most carbon dioxide in 2050 will be permanently stored underground, although some will be used in processes such as chemical manufacturing. The draft indicates that 100 million tons of the CO2 captured by 2050 will come from the energy sector, including fossil fuel power plants or "biofuel" sources like organic waste. The EU will have to capture about 200 million tons of atmospheric carbon dioxide directly to offset some of the remaining emissions in 2050.
Chris Davies, director of CCS Europe, noted that a lack of political support has made the EU try to catch up to quickly scale up technology. The EU currently has no ongoing carbon dioxide storage projects. The Commission did not comment on the draft document, which was first published by Bloomberg News. The draft states that establishing the infrastructure for carbon capture and storage in this decade will require funding from the EU and individual countries.
