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Support for ‘promising regions’ of Europe in drive to develop low-carbon energy and industry

The STRATEGY CCUS team at the project launch in Orleans, May 2019

An ambitious international project to support the development of low-carbon energy and industry in Southern and Eastern Europe got under way in May with funding from the European Union.

Headed by the French geological survey, BRGM, the research partnership combines the expertise of 17 partners from  ten  European  countries  in  the  field  of  carbon  capture,  utilisation  and  storage  (CCUS); a technology  considered crucial to climate action.

In 2017, the International Energy Agency warned that CCUS technologies were not developing fast enough to meet emissions reduction targets laid out in the Paris Agreement. The STRATEGY CCUS project aims to meet this challenge in eight regions identified as promising for CCUS by producing local development plans and business models tailored to industry’s needs.

The  plans  will  also  define  carbon  dioxide  (CO2)  transport  corridors  between  local  CCUS  clusters  of  industry,  and connecting with North Sea CCUS infrastructure, in order to reduce costs and contribute to a Europe-wide CCUS infrastructure.

The  project  team,  which  intends  to  develop  plans  in  close  cooperation  with  stakeholders,  will  also  provide  methodologies and examples of best practice for potential CCUS developers, for areas such as public acceptance, stakeholder engagement, lifecycle analyses and techno-economic assessments.The  promising  start-up  regions  were  selected  within  seven  countries  –  Spain,  France,  Greece,  Portugal,  Croatia,  Romania and Poland – representing 45% of Europe’s CO2 emissions from the industry and energy sectors (EEA, 2016).

They feature elements considered ideal for CCUS development, such as clusters of industry, CO2 storage and/or utilisation opportunities and the potential for hydrogen production and use.

Dr  Fernanda M L Veloso, of BRGM and project coordinator, said:  “STRATEGY CCUS is crucial to paving  the  way  for operational CCUS sites from the early 2020s, as it will elaborate on the feasibility plans of promising regions and take into account technical, economical and societal aspects. Countries bordering the North Sea are already discussing plans for CCUS development and offshore geological storage. There is thus an urgent need for the rest of Europe to engage in strategic planning for CCUS development, giving priority to local solutions before looking at wider European connection schemes.”

Photo: The STRATEGY CCUS team at the project launch in Orleans, May 2019. Credit: BRGM