In a recently published post entitled ‘Funding CDR Research, Development & Innovation for a Net Zero Competitive EU’, Eloisa Viloria, Rodica Avornic, Sylvain Delerce and Lydia Loopesko from Carbon Gap have provided recommendations regarding how CDR should be funded and scaled up.
Key takeaways:
- In order to achieve the EU net zero goals by 2050, the amount of CO2 that is removed should range between 400 Mt and 800 Mt.
- The net zero goals can only be achieved if the EU swiftly deploys a wide range of CDR methods.
- The CDR sector can grow to bring significant economic gains. By 2050, it can have an annual value of EUR 220 billion, employ around 670,000 people and spur innovation. This growth can enable Europe to have a leading position in the green economy.
- However, there are significant barriers that render its expansion challenging such as the lack of sufficient CDR research and inadequacy of funding schemes.
- Between 2020 and 2023, the EU has allocated around EUR 657 million for CDR. That said, this amount represents only 0.1 % of the total budget that the EU has spared for climate action from 2021 until 2027.
- In addition, the EU’s funding schemes are not explicitly geared towards CDR development. This situation stems from the fact that present calls cover both CDR and carbon capture and storage (CCS), a technology that has similarities with CDR but cannot be classified as a CDR technology.
- Therefore, the EU will have to channel funds in the range of EUR 2.88 and EUR 5.85 billion during the next 15-20 years so as to facilitate the technological development of CDR methods and prepare CDR methods for deployment.
- Funding for the research, development and innovation (‘RD&I’) of CDR should become easier to detect and access and more reliable.
- Calls should be made to receive funds for a range of CDR methods.
- The scale-up of CDR should not only address the technical dimensions of CDR but also address issues related to CDR regulations and societal expectations. To achieve this aim, goals that are established to create funds should cover both technical and non-technical aspects of CDR.
- Funding schemes should be supported by not only the EU but also member states and private actors.
- Funding schemes should support CDR projects both during their initial and deployment phases.
To read the full post, visit EU carbon removal funding.