The European Commission is required to assess the CCS Directive, and then present report to the European Parliament and Council by March 2015, as mandated by Article 38 of the Directive on the geological storage of CO₂ (CCS Directive). To this end, an external evaluation study started in May 2014 and is expected to be finalised by the end of this year.

The review process entails a much wider scope then the provisions of Article 38, as it is being undertaken under the REFIT (Regulatory Fitness and Performance) Programme which aims to systematically map and screen the entire body of European Union (EU) legislation to make it more efficient, including both legislation in force as well as legislation which is in the pipeline. This implies a wider assessment of the effectiveness, efficiency and legal practicality of several of the CCS Directive provisions, looking at how the enabling policy of CCS at European level has worked out so far in practice. This is the reason why the “review” should be seen as an overall assessment whether the CCS Directive still provides an adequate framework for CCS in the EU and opens the door to suggest possible improvements beyond the current legal framework.

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Source: Global CCS Institute - insights