Scottish Carbon Capture & Storage (SCCS) launched the report, "Unlocking North Sea CO2 Storage for Europe", at a special gathering of European Union politicians and policy makers in Brussels, ahead of a European Parliament debate on the future of EU CCS policy. It comes one week after EU climate change ministers set out their vision for a low-carbon economy.

The report recommends a combination of practical actions and policy incentives for the next five years. If taken, these efforts will validate many gigatonnes of CO2 storage capacity needed by Europe’s power and industry sectors, and build a strong business case for attracting investment in a carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry. In particular, governments around the North Sea are urged to develop a shared CO2 storage infrastructure.

The report’s five-year action framework drew on the results of a conference of leading European CCS experts held in Edinburgh in September 2013.

The report’s release coincides with a meeting of the European Parliament’s Environment Committee, which is debating proposals urging Member States to revitalise and strengthen their support for CCS. These include an EU-wide target to capture and store 10 million tonnes of CO2 each year by 2020, and undertaking projects to validate storage sites –supported by a robust mechanism for ensuring CO2 clean-up at power plants and industrial facilities, such as a CCS certificates on hydrocarbon production or imports.

>>more

Source: Carbon Capture Journal, 10 Nov 2013