Europe's Net-Zero Ambitions Need a CO₂ Transport Plan

Euractiv

15-07-2025

Europe's bold climate ambitions need solid infrastructure to support them. If the EU is serious in leading the world in clean technologies, curb industrial emissions, and maintain global competitiveness, it cannot overlook one essential component to make this a reality: a regulatory framework for CO2 transport.
Carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) is no longer theoretical. Projects across the continent, such as Porthos in the Netherlands and Greensand in Denmark, have moved from promise to practice. These frontrunners have made final investment decisions and begun operations. But for Europe to scale up from isolated projects to a coherent, cross-border network, it must urgently develop a regulatory framework that provides clarity, incentives, and investment certainty for CO2 transport infrastructure.
Without this, Europe cannot connect the dots between industrial emissions and safe, permanent storage.
The Missing Link in Industrial Decarbonisation
According to the European Commission's Industrial Carbon Management Strategy, CO2 transport is the "key enabler common to all pathways." Whether CO2 is destined for underground storage or industrial reuse, it must first be moved. And often it will have to be moved across national borders. The Joint Research Centre estimates that Europe will need a CO2 pipeline network spanning up to 19,000 km by 2050, requiring between €9.3 to €23.1 billion in investment.
But the market alone won't deliver this infrastructure at the scale and pace required. We need a European regulatory package to coordinate planning, harmonise technical standards, and unlock public and private funding.
Give Investors a Clear Signal
The lack of a predictable regulatory framework makes long-term investment risky. Building pipelines, terminals, and storage hubs is capital intensive, and future demand is uncertain. Without certainties, network operators can't justify oversizing infrastructure to capture economies of scale, hence making Europe less resilient.
The forthcoming EU regulation must provide such certainties. It should define infrastructure components, establish clear rules on third-party access, and allow for cost-recovery mechanisms like tariff regulation or contracts-for-difference schemes. Most importantly, it must not penalise the first movers. Early investments should be protected through grandfathering provisions or exemptions to ensure regulatory certainty and fairness.
Public Funding Is Essential but Not Sufficient
The Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and Innovation Fund have taken important steps. In 2024, the Commission awarded €452 million to five CCUS projects. Earlier this year, it committed €1.25 billion for energy infrastructure, including €250 million for CO2 transport and storage. Yet these figures are shadowed by what is needed to meet the EU's 2030 target of 50 million tonnes of annual CO2 injection capacity.
Funding must go beyond first-of-its-kind projects. Strategic support should enable network build-out, support smaller emitters, and de-risk private capital. That means significantly increasing budgets in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (2028–2034), launching an Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) for CCUS, and deploying EIB-backed guarantees to absorb early project risk.
Connect Europe. Literally.
One of the biggest barriers to overcome is fragmentation. Existing national or even regional rules, such as those in Denmark and in Flanders, are important steps forward, but they risk creating a patchwork that hinders cross-border integration. The EU regulatory package must ensure consistency while respecting Member State autonomy, especially for storage infrastructure.
This includes resolving legal barriers to access CO2 stores in the UK and Norway. A bilateral EU-UK agreement recognising each other's carbon market and storage rules would unlock cost-effective storage options, potentially saving EU emitters €2.6 billion per year by 2040. Europe's climate goals shouldn't stop at its borders.
Not Just Pipelines
While pipelines will be the backbone of the CO2 network, they won't serve everyone. Many emitters, particularly in Southern and Eastern Europe, are far from industrial clusters or storage hubs. For them, non-pipeline transport, for example via ship, barge, rail, and truck, is the only viable solution. The regulatory package must recognise this and avoid subsidy schemes that unfairly favour one mode over another.
While regulated tariffs may not be appropriate for ships, access to funding, standardisation of quality and safety requirements, and liability frameworks should apply across all transport modes. The EU must ensure unity by allowing all emitters to participate in CCUS, regardless of geography.
Planning for the Future, Starting Now
Permitting delays are already affecting projects like Porthos in the Netherlands. Europe cannot afford to let bureaucracy slow down climate action. That's why CO2 transport infrastructure should be designated as "net-zero strategic projects" under the Net-Zero Industry Act, with streamlined permitting, single contact points, and faster environmental assessments.
Planning must also be integrated with electricity, hydrogen, and gas networks. Repurposing gas corridors for CO2 transport could cut costs and accelerate deployment. An EU-wide aggregation platform, as envisioned by the Commission, could help match CO2 emitters with storage providers, enable better forecasting, and facilitate investment decisions.
A Strategic Asset for Europe
This is not just a climate issue. It's an industrial strategy issue. CCUS can safeguard jobs, attract investment, and help decarbonise sectors like cement, steel, and chemicals, where emissions are hardest to abate. By developing a robust CO2 transport network, the EU can lead globally in low-carbon industry while maintaining its economic sovereignty.
Getting the regulatory framework right is not just a box-ticking exercise but rather a strategic necessity. Without clear rules, stable funding, and coordinated infrastructure, CCUS cannot scale. If Europe wants to remain industrially competitive while delivering on climate goals, it must treat CO2 transport as the enabler it is.
Francesco D'Apolito is EU Senior Communications and Events Officer at CCSA. Thierry Grauwels is the EU Director at CCSA.