Letter on carbon: Talk of the town

CCUS is under the spotlight at COP28 in Dubai as policymakers increasingly look to tap its potential to tackle hard-to-abate emissions

CCS is getting more airtime at COP28 in Dubai than it did 12 months ago in Sharm el-Sheikh. Cynics point to the hosting of this year’s summit by the UAE, a petrostate and CCS enthusiast with a growing portfolio of large-scale projects. But the global view of CCS has undeniably shifted in the past year. Policymakers have conceded that some emissions from hard-to-abate industries such as cement and metals will be beyond the grasp of the mitigation offered by renewables, electrification and green fuels—potentially leaving CCS as the only option. This has given the industry renewed momentum. More than 500 projects are at various stages of development worldwide, according to GEI’s global database