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The past few weeks, I’ve been spotlighting EU countries leading on carbon dioxide removal (#CDR). The Netherlands, on the other hand, has been leading the way on policy for point-source carbon capture and storage (#CCS). Dutch CDR policy is still in its infancy, but with many great companies and individuals in the country engaged in carbon management, it is only a matter of time for the Netherlands to move on CDR as well.
At a high level, the #DutchClimateAct sets a climate neutrality target by 2050, with a 95% emission reduction goal (hence an implicit 5% CDR target). It refers explicitly to both CCS and CDR to achieve it.
Interestingly, the country introduced a national CO2 tax (on top of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme) that will gradually increase up to €125/ton by 2030.
Where the Netherlands really shines is point-source CCS:
🤝 The country has signed a bilateral agreement with #Denmark on CCS cooperation, as well as a Memorandum of Understanding with #Norway on CCS to promote bilateral cooperation.
📝 Under the Dutch National Climate Agreement, CCS and carbon capture and usage (#CCU) are the main priorities within carbon management. The agreement also mentions that by 2030, CCS should account for 7 million tons of CO2/year of reductions.
💶 The country’s SDE++ (Stimulation of Sustainable Energy Production) scheme lasting until 2035 will subsidize CCS and #CCUS projects involving storage in Dutch gas fields. There is a ceiling of 5.3 million tons of CO2 captured/year to not divert from other climate-effective technologies.
🏗 Aker Carbon Capture is building a CCU plant (operational 2023) which will remove 100,000 tons/year. The project received €14.1 million from the Dutch government.
📍The #Porthos project aims for a capacity of 2.5 million tons/year. It is partially funded by the EU and received €2.1 billion from the Dutch government. (Note: A recent decision by Dutch courts on the environmental assessment procedure will delay the project).
While there has been vested development in point-source CCS projects, there has been little movement on CDR at the policy level. This is surprising, given the impressive line-up of companies and people emerging in the Netherlands working on CDR, including: Skytree , Dutch Carboneers, Carbyon, Paebbl, Spatialise, SeaO2, and greenSand. The Carbon remover; and individuals: Floris de Bruijn MBA, Berend de Haas, Mart de Bruijn, Codie Rossi, Hans De Neve, Samantha Eleanor Tanzer, Marta Sjögren, and Jake Fairbanks Kelley.
With such a strong line-up of CDR champions, I am confident that the Netherlands can emerge as a leader on CDR policy in Europe, leveraging its experience in CCS to expand to removals, most likely starting with #DACCS and #BECCS.
What is your take on the current and future role of the Netherlands in CDR policy? Any Dutch CDR companies or people you'd like to highlight?
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