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FIGURE 1: WORLD PRIMARY ENERGY SUPPLY BY SOURCE

FIGURE 2: CARBON EMISSIONS AND CARBON BUDGET
variety of sources. These include power by the rest of the world. As several
generation from gas or coal, hydrogen governments have set a net zero target,
production from gas or coal, and this is likely to increase the demand for
directly from energy- and emissions- CCS solutions.
intensive industries, such as those Large scale uptake of CCS technology
making ammonia, cement, and steel. will unlock significant opportunities
energy supply in 2050 (Figure 3). The When used with biomass sources in for hydrocarbon and renewable
use of oil and coal is relatively flat power generation, CCS can produce energy technologies to work together
towards 2030, after which both sources negative emissions, which are critical to towards a more sustainable energy
decline significantly. achieving any net-zero target in practice. mix. Such prospects can only be
As gas secures its place as the world’s All major routes to deeply achieved successfully if the energy
largest energy source from the middle decarbonise hydrocarbon use rely industry shifts its mindset from ‘gas vs
of the next decade, the impact of the on the large-scale uptake of CCS. Its renewables’ to ‘gas and renewables’. In
carbon footprint created by production future largely lies in the hands of addition, alternative options, such as
and consumption must be reduced to policymakers setting a higher carbon the greening of gas consumption, must
help achieve national and international price than the cost of the technology, be rapidly developed.
targets for climate change mitigation. or through supporting investments
from taxation. Industry can also play a Energising collaboration and integration
As gas secures its place as the role in stimulating quicker adoption by The successful and rapid
world’s largest energy source focusing on finding ways to reduce the decarbonisation of the gas mix will
rely on strategies to allow hydrocarbon
cost of CCS technology.
from the middle of the next Without governments enacting and renewable energy technologies
decade, the impact of the carbon policy, and industry reducing the cost to work more closely together, not
footprint created by production of technology, the ETO asserts that CCS in competition with each other.
and consumption must be will not be employed at scale until the Technological approaches for a more
cohesive and sustainable alignment
2040s. By 2050, analysis suggests that
reduced to help achieve national only four per cent (0.8 gigatonnes of CO₂ encompassing production and
and international targets for per year [GtCO₂/yr]) of fossil fuel-related consumption, includes:
climate change mitigation emissions will be captured by CCS. Introduction of new, carbon-free
The report also indicates large forms of gas, such as hydrogen, to
regional variations in future uptake. national gas networks.
CCS takes centre stage Half of all currently captured emissions Power-to-gas, with existing gas
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) can are in Greater China in 2050. In Europe, pipelines used to transport hydrogen
be used to gather and permanently it is 19 per cent and in North America produced from electrolysis using
store carbon emissions from a wide it is 13 per cent, leaving little captured offshore wind power, or from

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