CO2 Capture and storage: A Key Carbon Abatement Option

Climate change is a major challenge. Secure, reliable and affordable energy supplies are needed for economic growth, but increases in the associated CO2 emissions are the cause of major concern. About 69% of all CO2 emissions, and 60% of all greenhouse gas emissions, are energy-related. Recent IEA analysis in Energy Technology Perspectives 2008 (ETP) projects that the CO2 emissions attributable to the energy sector will increase by 130% by 2050 in the absence of new policies or supply constraints, largely as a result of increased fossil fuel usage. The 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 4th Assessment Report indicates that such a rise in emissions could lead to a temperature increase in the range of 4-7°C, with major impacts on the environment and human activity. It is widely agreed that a halving of energy-related CO2 emissions is needed by 2050 to limit the expected temperature increase to less than 3 degrees. To achieve this will take an energy technology revolution involving increased energy efficiency, increased renewable energies and nuclear power, and the decarbonisation of power generation from fossil fuels.