The International Energy Agency (IEA) says fossil fuels will remain our chief energy source to 2030, covering up to 81% of global demand. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) will therefore be essential for fossil fuels to be a sustainable energy source. If the commercial uptake of CCS is to begin around 2020, what policy steps need to be taken, and by when? Is the European Commission’s projected cut by 2050 of 18-20% in CO2 emissions achievable? The UK and Germany have pledged ambitious targets and called for tougher post-Kyoto commitments, yet grand visions are still to be matched by concrete measures. How does CCS stack-up against other options, and does it risk diverting effort away from energy efficiency and renewables? Is CCS safe and sustainable, and does the EU have the appropriate technical and regulatory framework for it?

Keynote address by Andris Piebalgs, EU Commissioner for Energy

Introductory remarks by:

• Frederic Hauge, President of The Bellona Foundation, Norway
• Gardiner Hill, Chairman of the Executive Board of the CO₂ Capture Project and Director for CCS Technology at BP
• Jerzy Buzek MEP, Member of the European Parliament Committee on Industry, Research and Energy and Rapporteur on the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan)
• Graeme Sweeney, Executive Vice President for Future Fuels & CO2, Shell International

Co-moderated by Giles Merritt, Secretary General of Friends of Europe, and Henry Edwardes- Evans, Managing Editor of Platts Power in Europe

If CCS is to significantly contribute to a low-carbon economy, investment in R&D and demonstration projects must be speeded up. CCS will only be deployed if the cost per tonne of CO2 captured is lower than the carbon price of around €35 per tonne. How could a substantial uptake of CCS be financed, and what role could CO2 taxes and subsidies play? Will the EU’s planned revision of its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) ensure a new pricing mechanism that is robust enough to stimulate long-term CCS investment, or should CCS be made mandatory for power generation and other sectors? How successful will the Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan be in bringing about more coordination among national research agendas and mobilising public and private funding? The G8 Action Plan on Climate Change called in 2005 for CCS efforts to be intensified, but carbon’s low tradable value internationally is a major obstacle to CCS. Meanwhile, CO2 reductions in the EU are being cancelled out by increases in China, India and elsewhere. What can the EU do to encourage the spread of CCS in the world’s emerging economies?

Introductory remarks by:

• Olivier Appert, Chair of ETP-ZEP and CEO of the Institut Français du Pétrole
• Jeff Chapman, Chief Executive of the UK Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA)
• Chris Davies MEP, Member of the European Parliament Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and Rapporteur on CCS
• Gavin Edwards, Head of Climate and Energy Campaign, Greenpeace International 
• Mark-C Lewis, Managing Director, Global Company Research, Deutsche Bank

Co-moderated by Giles Merritt, Secretary General of Friends of Europe, and Paal Frisvold, Chairman of Bellona Europa