Review of international delivery of negative emission technologies

Negative Emissions Technologies (NETs) are technologies which remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, resulting directly or indirectly in net negative emissions.

This report explores the applicability for deployment in Scotland of technologies used across international NETs case studies. The case study projects cover direct air capture with carbon capture and storage (DACCS); and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS).

Key findings

The case studies are diverse in background, scope, maturity and targets, but show a few consistent high-level similarities. These similarities lead to the following conclusions:

Implementing a commercial business model through the sale of CO₂ credits, licensing of the technology, or the creation and sale of co-products, makes scalability easier and reduces risk.
Availability and contribution of public funding can enable projects to start with lower private investment. This is particularly the case for projects with a higher capital costs.
Successful projects are often located near long-term storage locations, minimising cost of transport and storage.
Schemes which capture higher purity CO₂ streams are likely to be more economically viable, with lower associated costs (particularly operating costs).
Many BECCS projects require secure, local and sustainable feedstock supplies which meet the plant capacities, quality and biogenic content requirements.
Higher carbon prices, carbon taxes or tax credits in some countries have created markets where NETs are more commercially viable.

Publications