CCUS must grow 120-fold by 2050 to meet net zero

Current rate of deployment too slow to meet even 2°C warming target, consultancy McKinsey says

Deployment levels of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technology need to grow by 120 times by 2050 to meet the world’s existing net-zero commitments, according to consultancy McKinsey. The current growth rate could be too slow even to limit global warming to 2°C this century, it says. Capacity would need to reach 715mn t/yr by 2030 and 4.2gt/yr by 2050—although other estimates range from 6-10gt/yr by mid-century—to achieve the net-zero commitments pledged by 64 governments at Cop26, McKinsey says. Based on the current project pipeline, the consultancy expects about 110mn t/yr of CO₂ to be captured by 2030. Private sector investment in CCUS will be crucial. McKinsey puts the cos