Green groups wary as EU bets on future carbon capture

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🗞️ Driving the news: As the EU hosts a summit on carbon capture and storage (CCS) in Pau, France, environmental groups criticize the technology’s viability and cost
• A new report finds CCS projects across Europe could cost up to €520 billion, with €140 billion needed in government support

🔭 The context: Despite CCS’s 50-year history of limited success, the EU considers it essential to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050
• However, critics argue that CCS benefits the fossil fuel industry and diverts resources from more effective climate solutions, citing failures in past projects

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: As climate goals near, reliance on costly, unproven technologies like CCS could delay crucial action on emissions reductions, potentially worsening climate impacts

⏭️ What's next: The EU recently passed legislation requiring oil and gas companies to deploy CO2 storage by 2030
• However, many countries have yet to provide data needed to enforce these targets, complicating efforts to scale up CCS

💬 One quote: "Relying on CCS... will force European governments to introduce eye-wateringly high subsidies," – Andrew Reid, energy finance analyst at IEEFA

📈 One stat: The Northern Lights CCS project in Norway stores just 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 annually, far below the EU's 50 million tonne goal for 2030

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