Cost reduction of CO2 capture (new or improved technologies)

The high cost of carbon capture is still the most relevant stumbling block for a wider application of CCUS. Commercial deployment of CCUS requires a significant reduction of the energy intensity of the CO₂ capture process for power plants or other energy-intensive industries, and a substantial decrease of the cost of capture. A continuous effort is needed to develop and demonstrate new or improved capture technologies.

The objective is the pilot demonstration of advanced CO₂ capture technologies that have a high potential for increasing capture rates and efficiency, while reducing energy penalty and improving cost-efficiency of the whole capture process. Projects will test operating conditions and operational flexibility, and provide proof of the reliability and cost-effectiveness of these concepts, whilst at the same time evaluating the cost, technical requirements and operational and safety impacts on the industrial facility and the associated transport and storage infrastructure. The proposal should state credible and clearly defined targets and key performance indicators (KPIs) for the energy penalty reduction, the capture rate and the relative capital and operating costs of the capture process. Environmentally benign technologies have to be pursued and their environmental impact addressed in the project also in view of future scaling up.

Technology development should be balanced by an assessment of the societal readiness towards the proposed innovations, including by identifying and involving relevant end users and societal stakeholders (such as civil society organisations, non-governmental organisations, and local associations) in deliberative processes and analysing their concerns and needs using appropriate techniques and methods from the social sciences and humanities. Proposals are expected to include aspects of circularity and best use of resources.