KEY MESSAGES
• Eurelectric welcomes and supports the European Commission initiative to prepare a robust, EU-wide certification system for carbon removals to complement mitigation efforts and reach the net-zero ambition.
• EU regulation must continue to incentivise the pursuit of greenhouse gas emissions abatement through cost-effective and market-driven solutions, including electrification, phasing out of fossil fuels and deployment of clean and renewable generation capacities.
• Carbon removals should be primarily used for delivering negative emissions and compensating for the residual CO2 emissions in hard-to-abate sectors, where no other technological decarbonisation solution is available.
• Eurelectric encourages the European Commission to increase the level of ambition of 5 Mt CO2 industrial carbon removals proposed in the Sustainable Carbon Cycles Communication, considering the current plans of the business community and the significantly higher target for carbon farming (42 Mt CO2).
• Eurelectric acknowledges that the proposed certification mechanism provides a label to prove/guarantee the sustainability/quality of removals. It is thus important that the ownership of the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) certificate is clearly defined by the Regulation.
• To increase trust, transparency and clarity, the framework should lead to precise, accurate and timely measurement of removals, while the certification process should be carried out by independent private entities, guided by strict public control.
• In view of the elaboration of 2040 climate targets, Eurelectric welcomes the early preparation of new policy incentives, which could lead to an increased demand for CDR credits, including support schemes, EU funds and a strategic approach to raise carbon removal ambition.