Filtering CO2 from the atmosphere and pumping it back into the ground: So-called Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) has become the focus of technology companies and states as the climate crisis becomes more severe. There are billions of dollars in funding for CCS technology in the USA, and tech giants like Microsoft are betting on it; and in Germany and Austria it should also be allowed for captured CO2 to be pumped into ground storage. Alternatively, CO2 can also be further processed into other products.
But now serious criticism of carbon capture is coming from a surprising quarter. Carbon capture is not a solution to the energy transition and political leaders would be better off making real, non-greenwashed commitments to encourage investment, said Andrew Forrest, executive chairman of Fortescue Metals. Fortescue Metals is a large Australian iron ore mining company with a lot of expertise in underground deposits.
At the 50th annual meeting of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Australian billionaire Forrest said the investment community needs fair competition and honest answers from political leaders about phasing out fossil fuels in order to invest. The IEA has described CCS as an “important part of the portfolio of technologies and measures required to achieve climate and energy goals” – so it supports its use.
Carbon capture: Austria should pump CO2 underground in the future
“We will continue to burn fossil fuels”
But Forrest said, “There is a simple question for business leaders: When do we stop burning fossil fuels?” Forrest said at the Paris conference. “If you want to drive capital, we have to have clear and obvious incentives for the harmful and clear incentives for the good.” But if carbon capture were to be supported by the state, then the following would happen:
“We’re going to continue to burn fossil fuels and magically put the carbon dioxide in the ground where there’s no evidence that it stays there, but a lot of evidence that it’s failing,” Forrest said. “I say to all policymakers: Don’t be the next fool who falls for the old lie and says I believe in carbon capture. It has failed for 75 years. It is a complete untruth.”
Australia’s Fortescue is a major iron ore producer that launched a project to produce green steel last year. There is increasingly harsh criticism of Carbon Capture & Storage. Environmentalists often compare it to fracking, where gas is also pumped into the earth – with possible dramatic consequences for nature and the population.
As reported, captured CO2 will be used primarily in the oil industry itself by 2044 – for so-called “Enhanced Oil Recovery” (EOR). CO2 is used to improve oil extraction (Trending Topics reported).
Carbon Capture: Captured CO2 will be used primarily in the oil industry until 2044