What to make of Europe’s upcoming carbon management strategy

The European Commission’s upcoming carbon management strategy will propose the sequestration of up to 450 million tonnes of CO2 annually by 2050 and kick off a debate about the future of the EU’s emissions trading scheme. On 6 February, the European Commission will present its vision for industrial-scale carbon management, including its capture, storage, and use, all of which are indispensable when meeting climate targets. “Reaching economy-wide climate neutrality by 2050 will require carbon removals to counter-balance residual emissions from hard-to-abate sectors,” states the draft proposal seen by Euractiv.

Meeting the bloc’s climate targets means the EU “will need to be ready to capture at least 50 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030,” the draft says. The 2050 goal is 450 million tonnes of annual storage (MTA) with an intermediate target for 2040 of 200 mta. “Based on most climate scenarios, Europe needs around 400 to 500 million tonnes of annual CO2 storage capacity” by 2050, says Eadbhard Pernot, who manages carbon capture policy at the NGO Clean Air Task Force.

But what the Commission is poised to propose goes beyond that. “In addition, between 100 and 200 million tonnes of CO2 will need to be captured directly from the atmosphere,” reads the draft Commission paper.

Source: ECEEE