THE COSTS OF CARBON DIOXIDE CAPTURE

[Michael Grove]

Can we turn CO2, the waste gas largely responsible for global warming, into a valuable feedstock? The question first emerged in the oil crisis of the 1970s, when alternatives to scarce oil were being sought. The idea has resurfaced on the wave of circular economic thinking, triggered by climate concerns and with a view towards incentivising carbon capture. But opinions on CO2 utilisation veer between scepticism and enthusiasm.

ZEP is an advisor to the EU on the research, demonstration and deployment of CCS. In 2006, it therefore launched its first Strategic Deployment Document (SDD) and Strategic Research Agenda (SRA).2 The conclusion: an integrated network of CCS demonstration projects should be implemented urgently EU-wide.

This was followed by an in-depth study3 into how such a demonstration programme could work in practice, from every perspective – technological, operational, geographical, political, economic and commercial.