Unveiling the promise and challenges of carbon management

While carbon management solutions can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions without stunting economic output, current challenges regarding high operational costs and logistical concerns need to be mitigated to facilitate large-scale adoption

Even as 196 countries adopted the Paris Agreement in 2015 with a shared resolve to reduce global warming, only about 140 countries have set a net-zero target and even fewer have enacted it into their domestic legislation or a policy document. As a result, projected global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are projected to increase by 9% by 2030 as compared to levels seen in 2010, a stark contrast to the 45% cut needed to limit global warming. Considering the fact that the energy sector contributes to around three-fourths of all GHG emissions, averting the negative effects of climate change calls for a complete transformation in how we produce and consume energy. While the transition to renewable and clean energy sources is pivotal towards achieving net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050, the large-scale adoption of carbon sequestration technologies across emission-intensive industries is a more immediate step to strengthen climate action.  

A shrinking window of opportunity  

Of all the carbon dioxide emitted as a result of anthropogenic activities, about 45% of the emissions remains in the atmosphere, with the remaining being absorbed by oceanic and terrestrial ecosystems. In the absence of significant efforts to capture these emissions and transfer them to sinks, the global atmospheric CO2 concentrations could potentially reach 550ppm by 2050, nearly double of what is recommended to maintain ecological and climatic balance. While natural techniques including afforestation and reforestation efforts can help in absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere, increasing levels of industrial activity will have to be complemented with the large-scale adoption of carbon capture, storage and sequestration technologies to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions. What’s more, aiming for net zero GHG emissions by 2070 will necessitate significant negative CO2 emissions, balancing out the non-CO2 emissions from agricultural activity that currently contributes to about 10% of total U.S GHG emissions.

This highlights the urgent need for decarbonizing industries, capturing the emitted CO2 and storing or converting it into useful products for further economic use. Still, the current global CO2 sequestration capacity stands at a mere 45Mt CO2, a far cry from the 1GtCO2 of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) capacity needed by 2030 to stay on course to meet the 2050 net zero CO2 target. 

Slashing the global carbon footprint (with Carbon Sequestration techniques) 

Although integrated CCUS systems are now being developed as sustainable decarbonization options, they currently capture only 0.1% of global emissions despite their immense potential in capturing CO2 emissions before they enter the atmosphere and cause climate change. That said, climate models from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the International Energy Agency predict that global CCUS capacity could expand to several billions of tons by 2050, contributing to about 8% of the total CO2 mitigation of energy sector emissions. While this by no means implies that rising CCUS adoption could support the continued use of fossil fuel-based energy sources, it will definitely play a critical role in curbing CO2 emissions till the transition to green energy sources is completed. With more than 300 CO2 capture projects being in the concept and advanced development stage, effort will be need to create the necessary CO2 grid that can connect CO2 sources to potential utilization and sequestration points. However, much work remains to be done on this front before costs can come down to a point that industries start embracing CCUS technologies at a faster pace.  

Challenges preventing large-scale adoption  

While polluting industries involved in cement, steel and chemical production need to be overhauled with CCUS systems to help them decarbonize completely in the foreseeable future, the pace of adoption has been slow due to technological, logistical and financial concerns. At the outset, CCUS systems are inherently expensive, with every project requiring customisation to suit individual facility requirements. This adds to the initial installation cost and also results in increased energy consumption to power the capture system. While efforts are being made to develop innovative and scalable solutions, the challenges of transporting and storing the captured CO2 in a safe and secure manner still remains a key challenge. Scouting for deep saline formations, depleted oil or gas reservoirs and even deep ocean formations for long-term CO2 storage is an important exercise. This needs to be combined with creating the necessary transportation infrastructure, connecting CO2 sources with these destination points in a cost-effective way. As the global energy demand keeps growing, creating the necessary framework for successful CCUS adoption by utilizing cost-efficient carbon capture and sequestration technologies will play a key role in helping countries balance socio-economic growth with adequate climate actions.   

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ET Edge Insights, its management, or its members