CCUS seen as smoother path to CO2 goals

China National Offshore Oil Corp already has the country's first offshore carbon capture and storage demonstration project, injecting over 100 million cubic meters of CO2 into the Enping 15-1 oilfield in the Pearl River Mouth Basin in South China, and tapping into the vast storage potential of its continental shelf.

The project, which captures carbon dioxide and injects it into the oilfield to enhance oil recovery, demonstrates China's growing capabilities in CCS technology.

Lin Boqiang, head of the China Institute for Studies in Energy Policy at Xiamen University, said the push for CCUS has transitioned from a niche research area to a cornerstone of China's climate strategy, driven by both State policy and corporate investment, signaling a profound commitment to meeting its ambitious mid-century goals.

China's reliance on fossil fuels, particularly coal, makes the large-scale deployment of CCUS indispensable for achieving net-zero emissions, Lin said.

"While the nation rapidly scales up renewables, CCUS provides a critical mechanism for deep decarbonization in sectors where emissions are hard to abate, such as power generation, cement and steel. This strategic deployment is beginning to show results on a global scale."

Analysis of the International Energy Agency's database shows that there are 1,017 CCUS projects globally at various stages, of which 62 projects are operational, with a capture and storage capacity of approximately 70.48 million tons per year.

Large-scale projects account for 42.7 percent of the total, and the capacity of projects at various stages is expected to increase to 450 million tons per year by 2035, it said.

China is rapidly closing the gap with global leaders in terms of project scale and numbers. The government is actively guiding this expansion through policy support and investment in major national projects.

The oil and gas sector has emerged as a major early adopter, leveraging CCUS for EOR, while simultaneously developing dedicated storage hubs.

Chen Qizhen, deputy director of the Administrative Center for China's Agenda 21, said there are currently 734 projects under planning, construction and operation.

Upon full completion, the annual capture capacity will exceed 500 million tons, marking CCUS's entry into a new phase of large-scale and diversified development, said Chen.

Domestically, technological readiness is also sufficient for scaled deployment, and China's CCUS technology has generally reached a demonstration level, Chen added.

Despite the progress, the global effort still faces a significant shortfall in meeting the goals set out in the 2015 Paris Agreement.

"Data from the COP30 meeting show that global emissions are expected to fall by 12 percent by 2035. However, this still falls short of temperature control targets of the Paris Agreement, and the challenges of technology, finance and capacity building remain severe," said Chen.

"Against this backdrop, the importance of CCUS technology is becoming increasingly prominent, underscoring the continuing need for China — with its vast industrial base and ambitious climate pledges — to accelerate its CCUS scale-up efforts as a global imperative."

Despite the State's determined push, the CCUS sector in China faces critical economic and logistical hurdles that must be overcome before it can operate at the scale required for climate neutrality.

To overcome these challenges, China is actively seeking international expertise. Partnerships with foreign oil majors like ExxonMobil and Shell are already underway to assess multi-million-ton hub concepts in large industrial parks across the country.

France's TotalEnergies has been involved in researching the development of CCUS technology related to refining, petrochemicals, power and other energy sectors in China.

It earlier signed a partnership agreement with CNPC to conduct extensive knowledge exchanges and cooperation in CCUS to address the changes and challenges in the energy and petrochemical industries.

London-based Shell is also looking to explore the feasibility of developing a CCS hub in the Daya Bay National Economic and Technological Development Zone in Huizhou, Guangdong province, aiming to capture up to 10 million tons of CO2 per year.

These international companies view China as a critical market for scaling their CCUS expertise, particularly in the creation of large-scale industrial hubs and offshore storage, said Lin.

"The updated CCUS roadmap includes targets to cut energy consumption, which signals a clear technological drive. China's sheer scale and centralized planning could turn it into a world leader in CCUS deployment, securing a key pathway for its climate goals while creating a new green industry," he said.