Carbon capture hits a growth spurt as financial and other factors align

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🗞️ Driving the news: Carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects have surged globally, growing over 50% in planned and operational capacity between 2023 and 2024
• Major players like Air Products and Microsoft are backing large-scale initiatives, including the world’s largest CO₂ sequestration project under construction in Louisiana
• Svante, a Canadian tech firm, has also opened a factory capable of producing enough filters to capture 10 million tonnes of CO₂ annually

🔭 The context: The rise of CCS is driven by expanded tax incentives like the U.S. 45Q credit, industrial decarbonization demands, and the growing need for low-carbon energy sources to power data centers
• Critics, however, argue CCS prolongs fossil fuel use and fails to deliver robust climate benefits when all lifecycle emissions are considered
• Despite these concerns, political and financial backing — particularly from oil majors and GOP lawmakers — has solidified CCS as a viable decarbonization pathway in the U.S. and beyond

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: CCS is one of the few scalable options for hard-to-abate sectors such as steel, cement, and hydrogen
• It also enables carbon credit generation and contributes to Scope 3 emissions reduction. However, deployment must address energy demands, carbon leakage risks, and trade-offs with renewable energy allocation
• The technology’s role in net-zero strategies hinges on performance transparency and proper boundary setting in emissions accounting

⏭️ What's next: More million-ton capture projects are expected to come online in North America, including in Texas and Louisiana
• Companies like Carbon Clean and Svante are pushing to miniaturize and modularize capture units for broader application
• Scrutiny from environmental analysts and academic researchers is likely to intensify, particularly around assumptions used in climate impact calculations
• Industry momentum will be tested by regulatory outcomes and buyer confidence in carbon credit markets

💬 One quote: “It’s been like a snowball rolling down a hill in terms of corporate interest and investment in the sector.” — Jessie Stolark, Executive Director, Carbon Capture Coalition

📈 One stat: Global CCS projects in development or operation grew from 392 to 628 between 2023 and 2024, marking a 60% increase

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