State of Carbon Capture, Utilisation & Storage 2026
Carbon capture is the lever the hard-to-abate sectors lean on for the emissions that efficiency and electrification cannot remove — cement process CO2, and chemical and steel routes where the carbon is chemically unavoidable. After years of slow progress the sector grew sharply in 2025, but it remains small against the task, and most projects still funnel captured CO2 toward enhanced oil recovery rather than permanent storage. This report compiles the public figures on where capture, utilisation and storage stands in 2026.
Operational capacity grew sharply, but stays small
The number of operating capture facilities rose to 77 in 2025, up 54% from 50 the year before, with a combined capability near 64 megatonnes of CO2 a year. That is genuine momentum after a decade of stop-start progress. It is also tiny against the scale of industrial emissions — under one part in a hundred of energy-system CO2 — which is why capture is framed as a long-horizon lever for residual emissions rather than a near-term workhorse. A further 47 projects were under construction, carrying roughly 44 megatonnes a year of additional capacity once commissioned.
The pipeline points to a five-fold rise by 2030
Source: Global CCS Institute — Staying the Course: Global Status of CCS 2025 — Executive Summary (2025)
The full development pipeline — projects from early planning through to construction — expanded to 734 facilities in 2025, and total capture capacity across operating and in-development projects grew about 23% to 513 megatonnes a year. If announced projects are delivered, operating capacity could reach roughly 337 megatonnes a year by 2030, more than five times today's level and a compound growth rate near 40%. The caveat is large: announced is not built, and project attrition has historically been high, so the pipeline marks ambition more than committed delivery.
Most captured CO2 is still used, not stored
Source: IEA — CO2 Capture and Utilisation — Energy System (2025)
The 'U' in CCUS dominates today. Around 230 megatonnes of CO2 are used each year, mostly in fertiliser manufacturing for urea (about 130 megatonnes) and in enhanced oil recovery (about 80 megatonnes) — uses that often re-release the carbon or extend fossil extraction. For climate value the direction of travel must reverse: in the IEA's net-zero pathway, over 95% of captured CO2 is geologically stored by 2030 and less than 5% is used. Policy already nudges this way, with the United States paying a higher credit for permanent storage than for utilisation, but the present split shows how far the sector is from its stated purpose.
FAQ
How much CO2 can the world capture today?
Operating capture facilities had a combined capability near 64 megatonnes of CO2 a year in 2025, across 77 plants — up 54% on the year before. That is real growth but remains well under one percent of energy-system emissions, so capture is a long-horizon lever for residual industrial emissions rather than a near-term substitute for efficiency and electrification.
What is the difference between carbon utilisation and storage?
Utilisation uses captured CO2 in a product or process — for example urea fertiliser or enhanced oil recovery — and much of that carbon is eventually re-released. Storage injects CO2 into deep geological formations for permanent containment. Only permanent storage delivers durable climate benefit, which is why net-zero pathways assume more than 95% of captured CO2 is stored, not used, by 2030.
Sources
- Global CCS Institute — Carbon Capture Stays the Course Despite Global Headwinds, with 54% Rise in Operational Projects
- Global CCS Institute — Staying the Course: Global Status of CCS 2025 — Executive Summary
- IEA — CO2 Capture and Utilisation — Energy System
- IEA — CCUS projects around the world are reaching new milestones
Related
Factory Decarbonization: A Practical Roadmap · The EU ETS Explained for Industrial Operators · Net Zero · Industrial Decarbonization · Carbon Footprint
Charts: Industry's share of global CO2 emissions
Sectors: Cement · Chemicals · Power Generation