Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is misunderstood

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Estimated reading time ~ 8 mins

There are 41 commercial carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects currently operating, according to the Global CCS Institute. Perhaps surprisingly, very few of these CCS projects were developed with the climate in mind.

The majority take the CO2 produced as a by-product from natural gas processing, and if oil field operators are located close by, simply supply it to them for Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR). Other sectors where CCS has been applied on a commercial basis, albeit in smaller numbers, include bioethanol, fertiliser, power generation, and oil refining.

Source: Global CCS Institute

The historical motivation to capture CO2 for non-climate reasons underpins almost every misunderstanding there is about CCS. As we’ll see, commentators have been quick to criticise the cost of capture, the lower than advertised capture rate, and the challenge in scaling up CCS capacity.

The move towards regulated carbon markets for CCS represents a structural break from the commercial origins of the CCS industry. And while there is much to learn from the historical experience, we need to be careful not to taint the need for future CCS capacity based on the experience of a relatively small number of unrepresentative CCS plants.

Remember, keeping global temperature increases within 1.5°C will depend on a massive expansion in CCS. Looking across 95 IPCC scenarios compatible with this climate target reveals a significant variation in the call on CCS by 2050, ranging from zero (one scenario) to almost 25 Gt per annum. The average is close to 10 Gt per annum.

Past performance is no guarantee of future performance. A slogan often used to warn investors that financial returns might be lower than those advertised or experienced recently. It should also refer to situations where the future can be dramatically better than the past. The CCS industry is one such example.

Lets dive in.