For nearly three decades, the UN has brought together almost every country on earth for global climate summits. The final text of the latest summit, the COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, includes a provision to boost low-emissions energy. In practice, this means that many different technologies must be used to help cut emissions – including carbon capture and storage (CCS) systems.
The International Energy Association (IEA) has provided an excellent overview of the potential of capturing, storing, and utilizing carbon dioxide. An estimated 45 Metric Tonne per year (Mt/year) is currently being captured and this must increase to about 1300 Mt/year in 2030 to meet a net zero emission scenario (NZE). Around 35 facilities are already in operation, and over 200 new facilities are planned to be in operation by 2030. However, this corresponds to ‘only’ 220 Mt/year of CO2 being captured, so facilities for at least an additional 1000 Mt/year will be required to soon meet the Net Zero Emissions (NZE) target.