The German industry is facing enormous challenges: the goal of climate neutrality by 2045, high energy prices, rising interest rates and geopolitical tensions. Although the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is the most important climate protection strategy, unavoidable or difficult-to-avoid emissions remain.
In order to achieve climate neutrality and maintain the competitiveness of German industry, carbon capture and storage (CCS) measures are necessary.
However, there are significant obstacles to the introduction of CCS, in particular political neglect, i.e. a lack of political attention and a reputation problem, a political and legal bottleneck in which private actors need political action to drive projects forward, uncertainty due to a lack of coordination by the state and a lack of know-how.
In this policy brief, the Policy Accelerator for Climate Innovation workshop developed the following policy recommendations to overcome these challenges:
Develop a comprehensive and positive CCS narrative
- Develop a clear and positive narrative on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) as a critical tool to reduce CO2 emissions and enable a carbon-free future.
- Communicating the role of CCS in reducing persistent and unavoidable emissions, particularly from industrial processes
- Using sound scientific evidence for argumentation and presentation, avoiding simplification and addressing stakeholder concerns.
Overcoming the CCS bottleneck
- Overcoming legal and regulatory barriers to facilitate the development of CCS projects.
- Creating access to storage sites in Germany and a national legal framework for CCS
- Promoting the publication of areas suitable for CO2 storage and developing CO2 infrastructure to reduce costs.
Cluster strategy for CCS development
- Identify and develop CCS clusters where multiple CO2 emission sources are geographically close to each other to achieve economies of scale in CO2 infrastructure.
- Prioritize the development of industrial clusters to demonstrate the benefits of CCS.
Government coordination and support
- Define the role of government in the development of CCS with a focus on support in the early stages of project development.
- Providing site descriptions, legal frameworks and early communication with the public.
- Promote knowledge sharing through a CCS knowledge center and a "real-world laboratory" (testing and implementation under real conditions).
- Changing public perception from "Not under my backyard" (NUMBY) to "Yes under my backyard" (YUMBY) by involving local communities and offering them economic benefits from CCS projects.