IDTechEx Explores Business Cases for CCUS

Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) enables CO₂ emissions to be captured from their source, or directly from the atmosphere. Technologies can then be used to recycle carbon dioxide into useful carbon-containing products, or the CO₂ can be moved to underground storage facilities. IDTechEx's report, "Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) Markets 2025-2045: Technologies, Market Forecasts, and Players", explores carbon capture methods, business models, and forecasts for the next decade.

 

 

CCUS has its origins in natural gas processing, with CO₂ needing to be captured and separated during the process. By coupling this carbon capture with enhanced oil recovery, profit could be made from the CO₂. Because CCUS requires economic incentives in order to feasibly exist, many CCUS projects today are still based on natural gas processing with enhanced oil recovery. Currently, governments also subsidize some CCUS projects with the aim of meeting emission reduction targets, and it may even be the case that taxpayers are able to cover large proportions of the costs for CCUS projects, as demonstrated by Canada's Quest CCS Project.

 

Decarbonizing existing assets is the aim of many mature CCUS projects. Carbon capture can enable large-emission industry sites such as power stations to go from producing millions of tonnes of CO₂ to becoming carbon neutral. For some sectors, CCUS may not be necessary long-term if alternative decarbonization pathways exist (such as large-scale deployment of renewable energy in the power sector). IDTechEx reports that CCUS will also enable the growth of emerging sustainable industrial sectors such as blue hydrogen and BECCS.

 

 

Regulations will be needed to achieve international net-zero targets. For example, with the existence of carbon pricing and compliance carbon markets, businesses are provided with incentives to lower their carbon emissions. Carbon pricing has already made CCUS projects possible in some sectors.

 

Carbon taxes require companies to pay per tonne of CO₂ they emit, while carbon trading markets (such as the European Union's ETS) see carbon reduction programs implemented nationally or internationally to monitor emissions. Voluntary markets differ slightly, as businesses or individuals can buy credits themselves from environmental projects and are decentralized and unregulated.

 

 

CO₂ utilization is described by IDTechEx as the practical use of waste CO₂, which has been captured abiotically, to produce financial benefits. Some profitable opportunities include applications such as CO₂-derived chemicals and concrete. Despite the early nature of the technology, CO₂-derived concrete players have already reported profitability through factors such as waste disposal fees and carbon removal credits.

 

For products derived from CO₂ utilization to be successful, IDTechEx suggests that they need to achieve price parity with fossil fuel-based incumbents, as there is a low willingness to pay a green premium for environmentally friendly products. An exception to this would be within the maritime and aviation sectors, where there is a regulatory push for CO₂-derived fuels.

 

 

IDTechEx reports that current levels of CCUS deployments are insufficient, with governments only having limited budgets to spend on projects. However, shifts to a market-driven approach for this technology are set to accelerate deployment. CCUS projects will need to scale up 20-fold by 2030, and they still have a long way to go, with only a small amount of CO₂ emitted worldwide currently being captured.

 

To find out more about the IDTechEx "Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) Markets 2025-2045: Technologies, Market Forecasts, and Players" report, including downloadable sample pages, please see www.IDTechEx.com/CCUS.

 

For the full portfolio of energy and decarbonization market research available from IDTechEx, please visit www.IDTechEx.com/Research/Energy.

IDTechEx provides trusted independent research on emerging technologies and their markets. Since 1999, we have been helping our clients to understand new technologies, their supply chains, market requirements, opportunities and forecasts. For more information, contact research@IDTechEx.com or visit www.IDTechEx.com.