Carbon Capture 2.0: Europe’s Strategic Shift from Science Project to Scalable Infrastructure

As the EU confronts the harsh math of net-zero deadlines, carbon capture is no longer a theoretical solution; it’s a cornerstone of the continent’s industrial strategy. In a recent Harvard Business Review assessment of global sustainability strategies, researchers highlighted a telling disconnect: while 90% of corporations have net-zero goals, fewer than 30% have defined technical pathways to reach them. One of the few scalable technologies that bridge this gap is carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS). The EU is now rethinking its entire approach to CCUS - not just as a climate tool, but as a means of industrial competitiveness, energy security, and policy credibility. Welcome to Carbon Capture 2.0.

The Urgency: Why Europe Needs Capture at Scale

According to Eurostat, industrial emissions in the EU-27 remain stubbornly high, particularly in sectors like cement, steel, and chemicals;where electrification and renewables offer only partial solutions. The European Environment Agency (EEA) reports that to meet the 2050 climate neutrality goal, the EU must cut an additional 600 million tonnes of CO2 - a figure that simply cannot be achieved without large-scale capture and storage. Recognising this, the European Commission has proposed the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy (2024), aiming to build 50 million tonnes of annual CO2 storage capacity by 2030.

Strategic Repositioning: From Grant-Funded Pilots to Market-Driven Hubs

The EU’s early approach to CCUS;driven by Horizon 2020 grants and regional pilots—delivered fragmented progress. Now, a more unified strategy is emerging. KPMG’s 2025 Energy Transition Outlook highlights a shift from “isolated R&D” to integrated value chains, especially in the North Sea region where cross-border transport and storage networks (notably Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands) are taking shape.

Bain & Company stresses the need for infrastructure bundling: tying CCUS development to hydrogen production, bioenergy, and heavy industry. According to Bain, "blending incentives across sectors reduces risk and accelerates deployment timelines." Meanwhile, Deloitte identifies a growing role for carbon-as-a-service platforms, where captured emissions can be traded, repurposed, or stored at scale by third-party operators. These models are already gaining traction in the Nordic countries.

The Regulatory Bottleneck: And the EU's Response

Despite growing momentum, real risks remain. As The Economist recently noted, the absence of an EU-wide legal definition of captured CO2 ownership has slowed investment and project approvals. The European Court of Auditors echoed this concern, citing delays in permitting and national-level inconsistency as “barriers to scale and investor confidence.” In response, the European Commission has announced new cross-border CO2 infrastructure proposals, including a unified permitting system and support for CO2 storage site certification under the TEN-E regulation.

Conclusion: Carbon Capture Is No Longer Optional

Carbon Capture 2.0 is not the future - it’s now. And it’s becoming a competitive differentiator for EU-based industries navigating both green transition pressures and geopolitical shocks. With the United States surging ahead via the Inflation Reduction Act, Europe’s window to lead lies in coordination, not just innovation.The Commission’s bet on CCUS as part of the Green Deal Industrial Plan is a signal to industry: if you build cleanly, you’ll be backed. For companies and researchers, the time to engage is now and this should be done through the Innovation Fund, Horizon Europe, and the Carbon Management Strategy consultation process.