Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) strategy

Ways for removing CO2 from atmosphere

1. creation or conservation of natural carbon sinks such as forests and mangroves
2. more durable technologies such as direct air capture and storage (DACS) or bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) can be used to remove CO2 from the air and store it underground.

Target

To reach net zero by 2050, up to 10 billion tonnes of CO2 must be removed from the atmosphere every year

Current status

• CDR currently removes 2 billion metric tonnes of CO2 per year, of which 99.9% comes from nature-based CDR solutions such as afforestation or reforestation.

• Only 0.1% results from durable CDR

Reasons for slow pace

durable CDR is still quite costly due to the nascent nature of the technology

Global efforts

United States

In addition to a tax credit that applies to CO2 use and storage projects and a $35 billion Regional DAC HUBs programme, a first-of-a-kind government procurement programme – the CDR Purchase Pilot Prize – will allocate $35 million in cash awards and purchasing agreements to qualifying projects.

group of US legislators introduced the Carbon Dioxide Removal Leadership Act of 2024 earlier this year

Danish government

recent deal to purchase 1.1 million tonnes of CDR from three companies – BioCirc, Bioman ApS and Carbon Capture Scotland – is the second-largest CDR deal ever signed and the largest direct purchase by a government.

Danish subsidy scheme, the Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) Fund, energy company Ørsted will receive a state-funded subsidy to use BECCS to capture and store 430,000 tonnes of CO2 annually for 20 years from 2026.

European commission

European Commission’s Industrial Carbon Management strategy includes a plan to use CDR to cut emissions by 90% by 2040.

The EU offers funding to develop such technologies under existing initiatives like Horizon Europe and the Innovation Fund

Canada

Canada’s Carbon Management Strategy, published in September 2023, provides a long-term vision for the development and deployment of technology-based carbon management in Canada, including CDR, newly finalized Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) Investment Tax Credit.

First Movers Coalition

These governments are partners of the First Movers Coalition – a World Economic Forum initiative that brings together companies that want to help scale innovative decarbonization technologies

Coalition members and partners are responsible for 90% of all carbon removal credits purchased around the world to date.

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