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BUILDING MOMENTUM
FOR THE LONG-TERM CCS DEPLOYMENT
IN THE CEE REGION
Ba o doda
The Building momentum for the long-term CCS deployment in the CEE region
project is funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA and
Norway Grants Fund for Regional Cooperation.
BUILDING MOMENTUM
FOR THE LONG-TERM CCS DEPLOYMENT
IN THE CEE REGION
CCS National Roadmap
[Czechia]
Michal Hrubý, Alexandra Visnerová, Vladimír Bartovic
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Chapter 1. The role of CCS in decarbonisation pathways..........................................................................................2
Chapter 2. Opportunities and barriers for deployment of CCS and its related technologies in Czechia.............5
Chapter 3. Policy roadmap for the scaled-up deployment of CCS and its related technologies in Czechia ......9
A) Scaling up RD&D activities and building national knowledge and experience.................................................10
B) Policy, standards and regulations............................................................................................................................14
C) Stakeholder engagement, cooperation & know-how dissemination ..................................................................17
D) Social aspects and public support...........................................................................................................................19
Chapter 4. Next and immediate steps..........................................................................................................................21
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Chapter 1. The role of CCS in
decarbonisation pathways
In 2019, the EU launched the European Green Deal to transform the EU into a modern, resource-efficient and
competitive economy, cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and reach net-zero GHG
emissions by 2050. Many 1.5°C compatible scenarios have assessed these targets and shown that a credible
but narrow pathway exists and will require the use of all decarbonisation tools available. Renewables and
energy efficiency are key components of that pathway, accounting for 80% of emissions reductions. But to
reach net-zero emissions, renewables and energy efficiency need to be supplemented by CO2 capture and
storage (CCS), utilisation (CCU) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) (particularly bioenergy with CCS/CCU
also known as BECCS/BECCU) technologies (Figure 1), particularly in sectors such as cement, chemicals,
iron and steel, waste incineration, and power and heat production. To address emissions from other sources
as well as historic emissions, the role of direct air capture with storage (DACCS) or utilisation (DACCU) should
be further explored. While these technologies are distinct in some ways, they use the same components of
the value chain: CO2 transport, storage and utilisation. Together they can mitigate 20% of global CO2
emissions, but to do so, the scale of their deployment has to increase significantly (Figure 2) from the
current 0.04 gigatonnes (Gt) of CO2 per year to approximately 8.5 Gt of CO2 per year in 20501
.
The benefit of CDR processes is that they remove CO2 from the atmosphere, not simply reduce what was
added and in combination with long-term storage can result in negative emissions. As such they are a critical
component of net-zero pathways in the European Green Deal and most recently in line with the COP26
Glasgow Climate Pact. There are however preconditions to be assessed, such as biomass for BECCS needs
to be sourced sustainably, while DACCS requires access to abundant and low cost renewable energy.
The pace of progress in validating and deploying these technologies across sectors has been slow to date and
in many cases with significant cost overruns. Currently, CCS, CCU and CDR plants globally capture 40
megatonnes (Mt) of CO2 per year2
, with many more being developed. An increasing number of pilot and
demonstration projects focus on safety issues, environmental impacts and costs, and generate lessons
learned to be used to further improve these technologies and bring their costs down.
To remain on track to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, activities and changes to the current status quo have
to be significantly accelerated already in the current decade. That requires activities at the national and
regional levels to enhance the collective understanding of the issues surrounding CCS, CCU and CDR,
build confidence and massively scale up CCS deployment to reduce costs of these technologies and
related infrastructure.
1 https://irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Technical-Papers/IRENA_Capturing_Carbon_2021.pdf
2 Ibid.
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Figure 1: Carbon cycle with the use of CCS/CCU, BECCS/BECCU and DACCS/DACCU technologies3
Figure 2: Carbon capture and storage as a part of the global decarbonisation toolbox4
3 Ibid.
4 Ibid.
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CCS deployment at the European level
The EU has put forward several mechanisms and instruments to enhance the understanding of various
decarbonisation pathways consistent with the 1.5°C scenario. One of the mechanisms, the European
Strategic Energy Plan (EU SET-Plan) aims to accelerate the development and deployment of low-carbon
technologies. Its Implementation Working Group 9 on CCUS (IWG9, or CCUS SET-Plan) specifically focuses
on strengthening international cooperation and speeding up the deployment of CCS and CCU
technologies. Czechia is a member of the CCUS SET-Plan.
CCUS SET-Plan estimates that under the 1.5°C scenario, 230-430 MtCO2 per year would have to be
captured and stored by 2030. This will increase to 930-1200 MtCO2 per year in 2050. BECCS itself would
need to be scaled up to capture and store approximately 30 MtCO2 per year in 2030, increasing to 400
MtCO2 per year in 20505
.
In November 2021, CCUS SET-Plan published the CCUS Roadmap to 20306
, in which it advocates for the
launch of the EU strategy for CCS and CCU as a pivotal component of net-zero GHG emissions goals. The
Roadmap proposes also amendments to existing plans and regulations including strengthening the role of
CCS in National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs), Trans-European Networks for Energy (TEN-E)
Regulation, CDR accounting scheme and the CCU guidance.
Focus on Czechia – Pathway modelling
In 2017 the Ministry of Environment prepared a Climate Long-Term Strategy7
that included CCS in one of
three scenarios to achieve 80% CO2 emissions reduction by 2050. This ‘CCS scenario’ was limited to CCS in
the power generation by 2050 in gas and coal-fired power plants and did not include CCS in the industry.
Czechia is the EU's 4th
largest GHG emitter per capita and all available studies to decarbonise the Czech
economy highlight a need to scale up deployment of CCS and/or BECCS, particularly in the industry sectors.
The 2020 McKinsey & Company study8
estimates CCS’s potential to abate 8 MtCO2 per year in 2050 from
residual use of natural gas in refining processes and steel production and BECCS in the cement and lime
sector. Industrial capture is recommended where CO2 can be effectively reused.
A 2022 detailed study on the Czech decarbonisation pathways9
by the Charles University Environment Centre
estimates CCS's potential to capture up to 20 MtCO2 per year in 205010
. The study foresees CCS for
power and heat production with biomass and natural gas, cement and lime and blue hydrogen
production. BECCS represents the potential for negative emissions11
.
5 https://www.ccus-setplan.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/CCUS-SET-Plan_Review-of-CCU-and-CCS-in-future-EU-
decarbonisation-scenarios_09.2020.pdf
6 https://www.ccus-setplan.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/CCUS-SET-Plan_CCUS-Roadmap-2030.pdf
7 Officially Climate Protection Policy of the Czech Republic, our roadmap refers to it as Climate Long-Term Strategy in
line with: https://unfccc.int/files/na/application/pdf/cze_climate_protection_policy_summary.pdf.
8 https://www.mckinsey.com/cz/our-work/pathways-to-decarbonize-the-czech-republic
9 https://www.mpo.cz/assets/cz/energetika/vyzkum-a-vyvoj-v-energetice/resene-dokoncene-projekty-a-jejich-
vystupy/projekty-podporene-v-ramci-1-verejne-souteze-programu-theta/2022/4/Vyvoj-elektro-energetiky-a-
teplarenstvi-v-CR-_vystup-V1_.pdf
10 An example: a single stationary CO2 source such as selected cement plant can emit around 0.5 MtCO2 per year
11 BECCS has to be assessed also from the perspective of soil carbon stock, agriculture and priorities for biomass use.
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Chapter 2. Opportunities and
barriers for deployment of CCS and
its related technologies in Czechia12
The energy mix and CO2 emissions in the power and energy-intensive sectors in Czechia
The energy mix is dominated by fossil fuels, followed by nuclear. Renewables play a minor role:
Table. 1: Czech energy mix13
Coal Oil Nuclear Natural
gas
Biofuels and
waste
Wind and solar Hydropower
30% 21% 19% 18% 12% <1% <0.5%
In the pre-pandemic year of 2019, total GHG emissions were 124 MtCO2eq, or 102 Mt was CO2 only (82%
of total emissions)14
. The energy sector was responsible for 52 MtCO2eq, or 49 MtCO2. The industry was
responsible for 26 MtCO2eq, or 21 MtCO2.
Based on the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR), the table on the left includes the
most emitting industrial activities in 201915
(in MtCO2 release to air, including biomass). The table on the right
lists selected EU ETS companies with verified emissions for 201916
(in MtCO2eq)17
.
Table 2: Emission-intensive industries and installations
Selected NACE activities in E-PRTR 16.5 Selected EU ETS installations 10.3
• Iron and steel 5.2 • Třinecké železárny 2.7
• Chemicals 4.9 • Liberty Ostrava 2.5
• Cement 3.2 • Unipetrol Petrochemie 2.5
• Paper and pulp 1.3 • Unipetrol Agrochemie 0.8
• Lime 1.0 • Českomoravský cement (Mokrá) 0.8
• Refinery 0.6 • CEMEX 0.6
• Glass 0.3 • Vápenka Čertovy schody 0.4
12 This chapter is a summary of the national CCS report published under previous Work Package 3 of CCS4CEE project,
see: https://ccs4cee.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/CCS4CEE-Czechia.pdf.
13 https://www.iea.org/countries/czech-republic
14 Total emissions reported to UNFCCC. See: https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/data/data-
viewers/greenhouse-gases-viewer
15 https://portal.cenia.cz/irz/formularUnikyPrenosy.jsp
16 https://ec.europa.eu/clima/ets/allocationComplianceMgt.do
17 The reportings under E-PRTR and EU ETS are different in their methodology, the numbers do not have to correspond.
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Lack of policy and regulations for CCS/CCU
• The EU CCS Directive has been transposed into the Czech law by Act No. 85/2012 Coll.18
on the
Storage of Carbon Dioxide into Natural Rock Structures and Amending Certain Acts. The Act
introduces a limit to commercially storing a maximum of 1 MtCO2 annually per site.
• To allow commercial storage of CO2 above the limit requires an ’implementing decree‘ that would
also set up financial security for CO2 storage. The decree is currently missing.
• The State Energy Policy (2015) and the Climate Long-Term Strategy (2017) reference the prospect
of applying CCS to power production from natural gas and coal. Both documents require revision and
should be updated in 2023.
• The NECP (2019) references CCS/CCU deployment only in connection with natural gas and the
production of synthetic gases (incl. hydrogen). CCS/CCU technology is not considered readily
available.
• The National Hydrogen Strategy (2021) references the prospect of blue hydrogen production from
natural gas with CCS/CCU. The Strategy concludes that CCS/CCU deployment is not yet feasible
from an economic and efficiency standpoint, foresees low demand for captured CO2 and outlines
that Czechia does not have suitable geological conditions to store CO2 .
• The Recovery and Resilience Facility Plan (2021) does not include any reference to CCS/CCU.
Level of experience in CCS/CCU
Research and development (R&D) projects
• Between 2004 and 2020, over 20 projects and studies were carried out.
• Mostly theoretical studies and assessments of geological CO2 storage capacity and transport
infrastructure have been conducted. Capture technologies have been tested in Universities‘ research
centres. None of the R&D projects have led to pilot projects yet.
• There are currently 6 ongoing projects, 4 of them funded by the EEA/Norway grants, 3 of them with
the support of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic: CO2-SPICER, METAMORPH, BIOCCS,
RPB19
, CCUS CZ-NO and CCS4CEE. These projects could lead to a pilot storage project
in 2024 and the industrial deployment of capture technologies in the future.
• BECCS is being assessed as part of the BIO-CCS project focusing on the exploration of biomass and
waste-to-energy processes with CO2 capture.
Pilot or demonstration projects
• No pilot CCS/CCU projects. Benefitting from the R&D outputs and outcomes from studies and
research projects done in the past, several companies and institutions are planning a full-chain CCS
project, which is subject to various enabling conditions. This information has not been disclosed.
Commercial projects
• No commercial CCS/CCU projects.
18 Further called Czech CCS Act in this roadmap.
19 RPB stands for Rotating Packed Bed. It is not an official acronym of the project, we use it for its simplicity.
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Status of CCS/CCU
CO2 capture
• Research centres have carried out several R&D projects on various capture technologies, including
ongoing METAMORPH, BIO-CCS and RPB projects. Due to missing transport, storage and utilisation
infrastructure, no projects have been piloted yet.
CO2 transport
• Czechia has a large infrastructure for natural gas which could be under several conditions
retrofitted for CO2. While experience with building the gas infrastructure is vast, legal obstacles
remain and include the building of new linear constructions, conflict of interest, environmental
considerations and would require inspections of technical aspects20
.
• Stakeholders see the role of railways and roads for CO2 transport but shipping has not yet been
considered a feasible option.
CO2 storage
• The conservative estimate of storage capacity is over 850 MtCO2: saline aquifers (766 MtCO2),
hydrocarbon fields (33 MtCO2) and coal fields (54 MtCO2). The storage would accommodate more
than 50 years of continuous storage of CO2 emissions from the energy-intensive sectors (~16
MtCO2 per year). The capacity estimates, especially in saline aquifers, are burdened by considerable
uncertainty due to a lack of site-specific geological data.
CO2 utilisation
• CCU deployment is part of the research currently under the BIO-CCS project. Several stakeholders
highlighted the need to create a CO2 market to incentivise CO2 utilisation, which would in turn help
scale up the deployment of capture technologies. CO2 utilisation has also historically supported
industries such as chemicals, pharmacy, building and construction.
Public perception
The only comprehensive survey on the awareness and acceptance of CCS/CCU in Czechia was done as part
of the EU 2011 Special Barometer. It showed very limited knowledge of CCS amongst the public (6%),
with around 33% believing CCS would benefit their region. Since then, no survey on public awareness and
perception in Czechia has been conducted. The need for such a survey was emphasised as one of the
conclusions of the ENOS project.
Key stakeholders and their overall positions
Research Institutions and Academia
• Czech research institutions and academia engage in a high activity (pace-setter). Czech
Geological Survey is the leader in the research of CO2 geological storage and the assessment of
potential geological storage structures, followed by the Czech Academy of Sciences. ÚJV Řež has
been active in capture technologies.
20 Technical aspects of retrofitting existing pipeline infrastructure are being questioned by several stakeholders. For this
reason, CO2 liquefaction and freight or trail transport are being mentioned as preferred options.
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• Universities, including CTU (Czech Technical University in Prague), UCT (University of Chemistry and
Technology in Prague), BUT (Brno University of Technology) and VSB-TUO (Technical University of
Ostrava) are leading the research in different аspects of CO2 capture, storage and utilisation.
Governmental Institutions
• The Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Industry and Trade engage in a medium activity
(fence-sitters). While they do not focus on CCS/CCU as a primary decarbonisation pathway,
Ministries provide up-to-date information on the upcoming or foreseen legislative changes and may
be a source of financial support for activities such as CCS-dedicated platform.
• A dialogue between governmental institutions, research institutions and the private sector is ongoing
and focuses on the preparation of the currently missing implementing decree.
Private sector
• The companies with high activity (pace-setters) are MND oil & gas company, C-Energy power and
heat provider, Českomoravský cement, InoCure nanomaterial producer and BeePartner consulting.
• The companies PREOL, a biofuel producer, Energetika Třinec, a power supplier, as well as the Steel
Union and the Association for District Heating of the Czech Republic, engage in a medium activity
(fence-sitters).
• MND company and Českomoravský cement are planning to deploy a full-chain CCS as the result
of the CCS strategy of Českomoravský cement (part of the HeidelbergCement) and as a follow-up of
the currently ongoing CO2-SPICER research project led by the Czech Geological Survey.
• CO2 Czech Solution Group and the Association of Chemical Industry engage in a high activity and
aim to scale up CO2 capture and transport activities.
Major news not yet covered by the WP321
national reports
• The project proposal on CCS was submitted to the Innovation Fund (large-scale projects call).
• MND publicly announced22
plans to explore saline aquifers as a storage solution.
• The Ministry of Environment has started preparing the implementing decree (financial security
regulation).
• BeePartners held a final conference of their CCUS CZ-NO project with Czech and Norwegian
partners.
• BUT (Brno University of Technology) is currently developing an advanced Rotating Packed Bed
system for CO2 capture in cooperation with German and Polish universities and the private sector.
• A study by the Charles University Environment Centre was published23
. It became the most detailed
study on Czech decarbonisation pathways, with CCS foreseen to play a significant role in selected
sectors.
21 Work package 3, see: https://ccs4cee.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/CCS4CEE-Czechia.pdf.
22 See, for example: https://oze.tzb-info.cz/klimaticke-zmeny/23442-mnd-chce-ukladat-oxid-uhlicity-do-hlubinnych-
usazenin-nasaklych-pravekou-morskou-vodou
23 https://www.mpo.cz/assets/cz/energetika/vyzkum-a-vyvoj-v-energetice/resene-dokoncene-projekty-a-jejich-
vystupy/projekty-podporene-v-ramci-1-verejne-souteze-programu-theta/2022/4/Vyvoj-elektro-energetiky-a-
teplarenstvi-v-CR-_vystup-V1_.pdf
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Chapter 3. Policy roadmap for the
scaled-up deployment of CCS and
its related technologies in Czechia
The roadmap provides an overview of various ambitious policy actions along the innovation cycle, from
research and development to the commercialisation of CCS technologies to reach climate targets set by the
EU and national strategies. While the roadmap aims to create an enabling environment to deploy CCS, it
increasingly focuses on ways to develop transferable knowledge and skills by national stakeholders
(government, research organisations, academia and the private sector) and set up channels to access
knowledge and exchange experience from international stakeholders. It also underlines the importance of
cross-border activities and joint regional demonstration projects to increase the stakeholders’ prospects to
access public and private funding.
Technical note
Proposed actions are bundled under a common title with each action including a description, relevant
stakeholders and a proposed time frame. There is no prescribed order of actions.
• Short-term – actions to be carried out between now and 2025.
• Mid-term – actions to be carried out between 2025 and 2030.
• Long-term – actions to be carried out after 2030.
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A) Scaling up RD&D activities and building
national knowledge and experience
Key action Number Approach Stakeholders Timeline
Knowledge
platforms
A1.1 • A national CCS-dedicated platform should be created jointly by the
private sector and the Czech Geological Survey in the lead. The platform
would be a leading partner in discussions with the government. It could
manage an interactive website in Czech and English focused on
knowledge sharing, targeting national and international stakeholders. The
website can be linked to the CCUS SET-Plan website.
Private sector, NGOs24
, civil society
organisations, research institutions,
Ministry of Environment, Ministry of
Industry and Trade
Short-term
A1.2 • Stakeholders could consider joining the recently launched CO2 Czech
Solution Group platform focusing on CCU. Provided growing interest from
stakeholders, the national CCS-dedicated platform could align its
activities with the CO2 Czech Solution Group whichcould lead to a full
CCUS value-chain platform.
Private sector, NGOs, civil society
organisations, research institutions,
Ministry of Environment, Ministry of
Industry and Trade
Short-term
A1.3 • The Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Czech
Chamber of Commerce and/or CzechInvest should support the CCSdedicated
platform and share it via their official websites.
Ministries, chambers, unions,
investment platforms
Short-term
A1.4 • The Czech Geological Survey, VSB Technical University of Ostrava and
other institutions and universities together with the private sector could
collaborate on developing new interdisciplinary Bachelor/Master and
PhD programmes and curricula covering capture, transport and storage
technologies.
Universities (CTU, UCT, BUT and
VSB-TUO), private sector
Short-term
24 Non-governmental organizations.
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Engagement
with
international fora
A2.1 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade should increase its engagement in
the EU SET-Plan (IWG9) that focuses on R&I and establish a channel to
regularly disseminate knowledge and plans of the EU SET-Plan to
national stakeholders and actively seek their feedback.
Ministry of Industry and Trade Short-term
A2.2 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade should play a more active role in the
global Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) and
disseminate international knowledge and best practice to national
stakeholders.
Ministry of Industry and Trade Short-term
A2.3 • Czech stakeholders, including MND, Českomoravský cement, Czech
Geological Survey and the CO2 Czech Solution Group, should join the
EU Zero Emission Platform (ZEP) and/or CO2 Value Europe (focused
only on CCU) to benefit from the shared knowledge and have access to
networking activities across the EU. The same stakeholders should join
the IEAGHG25
to benefit from global knowledge and networking.
Private sector, research institutions Short-term
Identifying
industrial hubs,
clusters,
CO2 transport
networks
A3.1 • Municipalities should access the available support from the EU Just
Transition Fund for 3 Czech regions and include plans for CCS
projects for selected waste incineration plants or high-emitting
companies.
Municipalities, private sector,
Permanent Mission of the Czech
Republic to the EU
Short-term
A3.2 • Through the national CCS-dedicated platform, there should be a
university collaboration including Czech Technical University, the
University of Chemistry and Technology and the Technical University of
Ostrava to deliver needed research tools, data and knowledge for
industrial clusters.
Universities, private sector Short-term
A3.3 • Municipalities should develop partnerships with the waste-to-energy
(WtE) and biomass-to-energy (BtE) plants to jointly explore possibilities of
CO2 capture and storage.
Municipalities, private sector Short-term
A3.4 • A new map could reproduce existing knowledge from the EU-level
projects (CASTOR, EU GeoCapacity and ENOS) and include further
information such as available transport modes, existing infrastructure for
gas transport and main road connections from large-scale CO2 sources.
The map can be incorporated into the website of the national CCSdedicated
platform.
Czech Geological Survey Mid-term
25 International Energy Agency (IEA) Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme
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Funding and
financial support
for RD&D
projects
A4.1 • Companies could share their knowledge and experience with the
Innovation Fund and cooperate with the Permanent Mission of the Czech
Republic to the EU and the Ministry of Environment which has already
developed the guidance for the Innovation Fund.
• Technology Agency of the Czech Republic (TACR) could finance the
preparation phase of grant proposals into the Innovation Fund or others.
Private sector, Ministry of
Environment, TACR, Permanent
Mission of the Czech Republic to
the EU
Short-term
A4.2 • The Ministry of Environment with assistance from the Permanent Mission
of the Czech Republic to the EU should develop guidance for interested
stakeholders for other grant opportunities, operational programmes,
Just Transition Fund and Modernisation Fund.
Ministry of Environment, Ministry of
Industry and Trade, Permanent
Mission of the Czech Republic to
the EU
Short-term
A4.3 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Environment and the
private sector should regularly invite the European Investment Bank
(EIB) to share with national stakeholders the technical and funding
process-related expertise, opportunities to access the project
development assistance, including the loan guarantees and create
guidelines based on these recommendations.
Private sector, Ministry of Industry
and Trade, Ministry of
Environment, EIB
Short-term
A4.4 • The private sector should be better informed about the role of EIB as a
financial enabler for first demonstration and commercial CCS projects.
The National Development Bank or CzechInvest on the other hand could
initiate pilot small-scale capture projects, for example in WtE sector.
Financial institutions, ministries,
private sector
Mid-term
A4.5 • A consortium of partners including Central and Eastern European
companies, institutions and universities could be formed to apply for
Horizon Europe or Innovation Fund (i.e. full-chain CCS development).
Experience from unsuccessful proposals should be shared, too.
Private sector, institutions,
universities
Mid-term
A4.6 • The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Environment should
redistribute revenues from the EU ETS allowances to also support CCS
projects.
Ministry of Finance, Ministry of
Environment
Short-term
A4.7 • The government and respective ministries should allow for direct
financing of pre-feasibility and feasibility studies and the exploration of
the saline aquifer from the state budget to scale up CCS deployment.
Government, Ministry of Finance,
Ministry of Environment, Ministry of
Industry and Trade
Short-term
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Storage site
exploration
A5.1 • The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Environment should allocate
appropriate funding to Czech Geological Survey to explore the most
promising saline aquifer sites and confirm their potential.
Ministry of Finance, Ministry of
Environment, Czech Geological
Survey
Short-term
A5.2 • The CO2 storage permitting process should be incentivised for
depleted oil & gas fields. Coal seams could be inspected for CO2
storage in more detail.
Czech Mining Authority, Ministry of
Environment
Mid-term
A5.3 • The Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Industry and Trade
should jointly communicate to the European Commission the need for
budget allocation (e.g., through CEF) for new EU-wide CO2 storage
projects that would finance the exploration of saline aquifers.
Ministry of Industry and Trade,
Ministry of Environment
Short-term
Bridging the
valleys of death
A6.1 • Interested stakeholders should consult respective ministries and
consulting companies on the availability of funding opportunities and
the application process.
Private sector, ministries,
consulting companies
Short-term
A6.2 • There must be a concerted action at the EU level to pursue PCI26
that
would finance the pipeline infrastructure for CO2 transport.
• Net4gas (Czech natural gas TSO27
) could join the newly formed
consortium of TSOs of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania to
develop hydrogen and CO2 transport infrastructure.
European Commission, Ministry of
Industry and Trade, TSO Net4Gas,
Permanent Representation of the
Czech Republic to the EU
Long-term
A6.3 • PCI could be developed for the CO2 transport by local oil & gas
companies, either to transfer CO2 to interim storage hubs (as planned in
the EU CCS Interconnector, Gdansk) or to connect the onshore storage
locations with industrial hubs. These could seek financial support through
the CEF28
fund.
European Commission, private
sector, Permanent Representation
of the Czech Republic to the EU
Mid-term
A6.4 • Stakeholders should follow the nearby Gorazdze (PL) cement plant,
where a pilot capture project with the transport of CO2 to the North Sea is
being developed.
Private sector, government Short-term
26 Project of Common Interest
27 Transmission system operator
28 Connecting Europe Facility
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B) Policy, standards and regulations
Key action Number Approach Stakeholders Timeline
Policies B1.1 • The Czech government should consult examples of climate and CCS
strategies and policies with countries such as the UK, Denmark, Norway
and Sweden.
Government, NGOs, civil society
organisations
Short-term
B1.2 • The Czech government should follow the available evidence of CCS
importance (IPCC, IEA, IRENA and others) as one of the decarbonisation
pathways in tackling climate change and benefiting also country’s
economy through new foreign direct investments and jobs creation.
Government, NGOs, civil society
organisations
Short-term
Guidelines and
standards
B2.1 • The Ministry of Environment should request the European Commission
to publish CCS guidelines on best practices on financial security
mechanisms and permitting processes.
European Commission, Ministry of
Environment
Short-term
B2.2 • Czechia should explore the possibility to increase engagement in the
ISO29
CCS technical committees to access global knowledge,
communicate such knowledge to national stakeholders and seek their
feedback as well as shape standards development within the technical
committee. The latter would require Czechia to become a ‘participating
member’ (instead of an ‘observing member’). A person/team should have
this task allocated on CAS/UNMZ30
by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
Ministry of Industry and Trade,
CAS/UNMZ, private sector
Short-term
Regulatory
framework
B3.1 • The Czech CCS Act (the transposed EU CCS Directive) should reflect the
current CCS development and remove any storage capacity limitation
(currently set at 1 MtCO2 per year).
Ministry of Industry and Trade,
Ministry of Environment
Short-term
B3.2 • The Ministry of Environment should finalise the proposal for financial
guarantees (‘implementing decree’ of the Czech CCS Act) to enable the
commercial scale of CO2 storage.
Ministry of Environment, Czech
Mining Authority
Short-term
29 International Organisation for Standardisation
30 Czech Standardization Agency/Office for Technical Standardization, Metrology and State Testing – Česká agentura pro standardizaci/Úřad pro
technickou normalizaci, metrologii a státní zkušebnictví.
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• The financial security regulation should support first-movers in CO2
storage and set the guarantee on a case-by-case basis.
B3.3 • The transport of CO2 by rail, truck and barge should be properly
addressed by TEN-T31
regulation which would enable the CCS firstmovers
to operate CO2 capture and transport projects connected to the
CO2 storage facilities.
• The Czech government and the Ministry of Transport should negotiate
such a proposal and shape the discussion during the Czech EU
presidency.
Government, Ministry of
Transport, Permanent
Representation of the Czech
Republic to the EU
Short-term
B3.4 • Provided the CO2 pipeline creation, the rights and obligations for CO2
transport could be transferred through a license to a Czech natural gas
TSO Net4gas that owns this license for natural gas transport.
Ministry of Industry and Trade Long-term
Strategies for
CCS application
for industrial
decarbonisation
and climate
neutrality of the
economy
B4.1 • The upcoming updated version of the Climate Long-Term Strategy
(LTS) and NECP should reflect the current CCS development. It should
avoid the language such as “CO2 storage is not available” or “CCS is not
economically and technologically feasible” and remain technology-neutral.
Ministry of Environment, Ministry
of Industry and Trade
Mid-term
B4.2 • New LTS should prioritise CCS for the industry only and discourage the
deployment of CCS in the power sector (e.g., coal or natural gas).
Ministry of Environment Mid-term
B4.3 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Environment and the
Ministry for Regional Development should jointly develop the CCS
national strategy in close collaboration with the CCS-dedicated platform.
Ministerial collaboration, CCSdedicated
platform
Short-term
B4.4 • Relevant stakeholders should jointly develop a sectoral decarbonisation
strategy:
o The Association of the Chemical Industry, High-level Group
on Chemistry, and the CO2 Czech Solution Group on a
chemical sector-specific strategy.
o The Association of Cement Manufacturers and respective
companies should cooperate on a cement sector-specific
strategy.
o Steel Working Group and the Czech Steel Union should
cooperate on an iron and steel sector-specific strategy.
Association of Chemical Industry,
High-level Group on Chemistry,
CO2 Czech Solution Group,
Association of Cement
Manufacturers, Steel Working
Group, Czech Steel Union, private
sector, ministries
Short-term
31 Trans-European Networks for Transport.
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B4.5 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade should establish a Working Group
specifically focused on the CCS covering all industries.
Ministry of Industry and Trade,
private sector
Short-term
B4.6 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Environment should
work on a strategy that would take account of WtE coupled with CCS
(also as part B4.3). The existing examples to consult include the Swiss
strategy for WtE or the Norwegian WtE project in Oslo.
Ministry of Industry and Trade,
Ministry of Environment, private
sector, municipalities
Short-term
B4.7 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade should amend the Czech Hydrogen
Strategy to reflect the current CCS development and the production of
blue hydrogen, despite the current natural gas market’s turmoil.
Ministry of Industry and Trade Mid-term
B4.8 • The Ministry of Environment could promote CCU mineralisation or
carbonation activities32
through the operational programmes,
Modernization Fund and Just Transition Fund.
Ministry of Environment Mid-term
Enabling
environment for
CO2 market
B5.1 • Oil & gas companies with support from the Ministry of Industry and Trade
could develop an intermediate CO2 storage hub for small-scale
emitting facilities. The hub would either enable CO2 to be permanently
stored either nationally or transported to another storage facility abroad.
Private sector, Ministry of Industry
and Trade, Ministry of
Environment
Mid-term
B5.2 • The Ministry of Environment could negotiate a faster development of the
EU CCU guidelines and inclusion of CCU storage such as mineralisation
or carbonation in the revisions of the Renewable Energy Directive and the
EU ETS.
Ministry of Environment Short-term
Resilience of
CCS strategies
B6.1 • Any amendments to the existing Czech decarbonisation strategies
should reflect the international findings (IPCC, IEA and IRENA) which
include CCS in all decarbonisation net-zero scenarios.
Ministerial cooperation Short-term
B6.2 • Climate Long-Term Strategy should prioritise the inclusion of industrial
CCS.
Ministry of Environment Short-term
32 Altough they can store only a fraction of the potential of geological storage.
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C) Stakeholder engagement, cooperation &
know-how dissemination
Key action Number Approach Stakeholders Timeline
Engagement
with
stakeholders
C1.1 • The national CCS-dedicated platform should benefit from the financial
support from the Ministry of Industry and Trade and/or the Ministry of
Environment. The financial support should be directed to developing a
model by (for example) the Environment Centre of Charles University,
exploring macroeconomic and environmental consequences of deploying
CCS in Czechia and disseminating findings from such studies to all
stakeholder groups.
Universities, Ministry of Industry
and Trade, Ministry of
Environment, Ministry of Finance,
private sector
Short-term
C1.2 • Existing global studies from the IPCC, IEA, IRENA and others should be
disseminated and external experts invited to Czechia to speak at forums,
conferences and other events. This could be particularly beneficial during
the Czech EU Presidency.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations, Permanent
Representation of the Czech
Republic to the EU, Permanent
Mission of the Czech Republic to
the OECD and the United Nations
Short-term
International and
regional
cooperation
C2.1 • Municipalities and the private sector in regions bordering other
countries could explore funding opportunities to estimate the CO2
transport and storage potential (see Upper Silesia as an example).
Municipalities, private sector,
Czech Geological Survey
Mid-term
C2.2 • The Czech government should initiate discussions with the V4 countries
to cooperate and explore state aid to finance joint CO2 transport and/or
storage projects via TEN-T, TEN-E and IPCEI33
. For example, Poland
recently approved a CO2 storage hub in Gdansk (PCI) and a cement plant
Private sector, ministerial
cooperation
Mid-term
33 Important Projects of Common European Interest.
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in Gorazdze (bordering Czechia) aims to develop a CO2 transport route to
Gdansk.
Stakeholders
cooperation
to create the CO2
market
C3.1 • The Nothern Moravia region could create a local heavy-industry hub
and a CO2 market.
Private sector, Czech Geological
Survey, ministerial cooperation
Mid-term
C3.2 • Steel and cement companies, WtE and BtE plants considering CCU could
explore cooperation with the chemical sector that can utilise captured
CO2. Such examples already exist in other EU countries. In Czechia, CO2
Czech Solution Group could be the leading initiative for CO2 utilisation.
Private sector, Czech Geological
Survey, ministerial cooperation
Mid-term
C3.3 • Scaling-up capture technologies could happen fast in the chemical sector
that can also use the captured CO2 as an input in their own operations.
Chemical and other private sector,
Ministry of Industry and Trade,
Ministry of Environment
Short-term
C3.4 • MND or other gas storage companies could build gas storage facilities
that would enable CO2 storage from small-scale sources. Larger volumes
of CO2 could be delivered to the permanent storage facilities at a later
stage.
Private sector Mid-term
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D) Social aspects and public support
Key action Number Approach Stakeholders Timeline
Building public
support
D1.1 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade (or Environment) and the foreseen
Czech CCS-dedicated platform should create a communication strategy
to educate the public about the needs, pros and cons of the CCS
deployment.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Short-term
D1.2 • High-emitting industries are at the centre of current decarbonisation
efforts. The media would welcome more proactive communication and
dissemination of their efforts towards decarbonisation.
Private sector, NGOs, civil civil
society organisations, media
Short-term
D1.3 • The Czech Geological Survey should continue its website dedicated to
CCS and assist in spreading well-balanced news on the CCS
development. It could later collaborate with the national CCS-dedicated
platform with support from the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of
Industry and Trade.
Czech Geological Survey,
ministerial cooperation, private
sector
Short-term
Building
awareness
D2.1 • Podcasts, blogs and other modern ways of communication should be
deployed. National CCS stakeholders should individually and/or
collectively explore opportunities in the online world to share findings from
their work with international experts.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Short-term
D2.2 • International experts should be invited to Czechia by the government
and universities to share insights and findings from their work.
• The ministries should give CCS a space in media and ministerial events
during the Czech EU presidency.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Short-term
D3.3 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Environment should
also rely on the research done by civil societies and NGOs, including
international work (Bellona, E3G, Bruegel, EPG, WiseEuropa).
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Short-term
Improving
fairness of the
D3.1 • Regional governments should use existing schemes of support for local
communities living in close vicinity to storage facilities of oil & gas fields,
where drilling and exploration takes place.
Municipalities, private sector,
NGOs
Mid-term
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decision-making
process
D3.2 • The oil & gas companies with the support of the Czech Geological Survey
should communicate to the general public the international scientific
conclusions on negligible risks from the CO2 storage leakage.
Private sector, civil society
organisations, NGOs
Short-term
Communication
of costs, risks
and benefits of
CCS/CCU
projects
D4.1 • Public consultations on the project overview must be held and
environmental impact assessments must be made publicly available.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Mid-term
D4.2 • The common interest in CO2 storage facilities must be stressed publicly. Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Short-term
Making sure the
CCS project fits
the local context
D5.1 • CCS stakeholders can use existing infrastructure for coal and oil & gas
(routes for transport, for example), which is already inherently coupled
with regions. The alignment with the local needs must be ensured.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Mid-term
Building trust in
decision-makers
and other
relevant
stakeholders
D6.1 • The Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Environment should
stress the importance of CCS in the national decarbonisation strategy visà-vis
the general public including its positive impact on the economy.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Mid-term
D6.2 • All stakeholders should regularly share success stories from international
CCS pilot projects, emphasising the maturity of the technology and
existing experience to learn from.
Ministerial cooperation, private
sector, universities, NGOs, civil
society organisations
Short-term
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Chapter 4. Next and immediate steps
We see a shift in the private sector towards CCS technologies, which is exploring opportunities to collaborate
with universities to use their laboratory results to pilot projects in commercial plants. This is particularly true for
capture technologies. In terms of CO2 transport, no ongoing research has covered it yet, but it is becoming a
focus of all key stakeholders. Geological storage of CO2 is led by the Czech Geological Survey and MND.
Their joint activities aim to prepare depleted oil & gas fields for future pilot storage projects. Recurring
comments from all types of stakeholders were about a lack of governmental support beyond R&D, due to
which stakeholders are unable to move to pre-feasibility and feasibility studies. Stakeholders demand the
government reconsider its position.
Key immediate actions from Chapter 3 to be implemented:
• The Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Industry and Trade should publicly demonstrate the
importance of CCS and include it in the broader decarbonisation strategies of Czechia, especially in
the upcoming revision of the State Energy Policy and Climate Long-Term Strategy34
.
• The private sector and all key stakeholders should launch the CCS-dedicated platform which would
become a strong and stable partner to the government and respective ministries in the debate on CCS
development and deployment. The platform would be the main advisor for CCS inclusion in the
revision of the state energy and climate strategies.
• Direct financing from the state budget would enable faster exploration of saline aquifers and prefeasibility
and feasibility studies for full-chain CCS projects to be carried out. A lack of finance through
other channels is a major hurdle. Overcoming it can significantly accelerate CCS deployment as can
be evidenced in other EU Member States (MS) that deploy CCS at a much faster pace.
• The Ministry of Environment should adopt the implementing decree to Czech CCS Act35
as soon as
possible. The financial security regulation for CO2 storage is currently a missing element for successful
commercial storage projects in the future.
• The Czech government with respective ministries should include CCS in discussions on the EU Green
Deal and decarbonisation efforts during its Czech EU Presidency. Showing the interest of CEE
countries in the CCS deployment is a crucial point for the successful transfer of knowledge and could
enable the inclusion of CEE countries in future international projects, especially to build CO2 transport
and storage infrastructure.
• The Czech government should consult other EU governments and international platforms and fora to
increase collaboration and more frequently disseminate knowledge and practical experience with
national stakeholders at all levels.
34 In English the official name is Climate Protection Policy of the Czech Republic.
35 Act No. 85/2012 Coll.
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BUILDING MOMENTUM
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The Building momentum for the long-term CCS deployment in the CEE region
project is funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA and
Norway Grants Fund for Regional Cooperation.