CCS and CCU Roadmap for Central and Eastern Europe

The European Union (EU) is approaching a decisive moment for its future industrial competitiveness and supply chain security. Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), which hosts a significant proportion of EU industrial output and industrial employment, bears a disproportionate share of the transition’s near-term costs and adjustment pressures. This is not because the region is less committed to climate ambitions, but because it starts from a more challenging baseline, with a higher reliance on fossil fuels and a larger role of energy intensive industries in the economic structure. In Poland alone, industry generates more than 20% of GDP and accounted for 5.1% of the EU’s industrial gross value added, ranking sixth in the EU.

„Security, Europe!”

„Security, Europe!” was the motto of the last year Poland’s EU Council Presidency. A well-designed climate policy, apart from driving a transition, should serve the security agenda. More than a decade of Russian pressure and provocations, followed by almost four years of Russia’s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine, has demonstrated how swiftly dependence can be exploited.

Reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels reduces exposure to coercion and disruption, strengthening investment and society stability.

Europe’s security is reinforced when the Union acts collectively. Therefore, it is crucial to frame decarbonisation and investments in clean energy technologies as a sovereignty and resilience agenda, aligned with industrial competitiveness. 

Competitiveness is dependent on carbon capture for hard-to-abate industries.

Europe’s resilience also depends on its ability to produce and maintain strong domestic industrial supply chains. As free allowances under the EU ETS are progressively phased out, industries that fail to decarbonise will face rising costs. This creates a clear investment imperative and a competitiveness vulnerability, particularly for hard-to-abate sectors such as cement and lime, as well as parts of chemical, steel, refining and fertiliser industry. A significant amount of emissions in these sectors are process related. Therefore electrification cannot make them CO₂ neutral. Carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCS and CCU) are essential to achieve deep reductions in emissions while maintaining production in Europe. These technologies complement other clean technologies in getting our economies to net zero.

From capture to storage: building the CO₂ value chain and making projects investable.

CCS and CCU require value chains that link capture to transport, storage or use under predictable rules. CEE countries should adopt dedicated national strategies that identify priority industrial clusters, set out realistic sequencing, and translate climate objectives into investable project pipelines. In Poland, a national CCS and CCU strategy is expected by the end of 2026.

A credible approach requires a mix of EU instruments and national measures that work together. State aid can be part of the solution, but it cannot be the sole answer, because fiscal space differs across countries and security expenditures across the EU are mounting.

CEE countries should actively apply for EU funding, such as the Innovation Fund, and advocate for sustained, accessible EU support for industrial carbon management.

Regional cooperation is equally practical for infrastructure development. CO₂ corridors generate cross border benefits while planning, permitting and costs remain national. Joint planning and coordinated bids for EU support are therefore a rational approach, particularly for backbone corridors designed to expand over time and connect multiple emitters to shared storage options. In this context, an IPCEI for Industrial Carbon Management should be considered as a flagship tool to coordinate state aid across MS, de-risk capital intensive infrastructure, and crowd in private investment, with safeguards that protect the integrity of the single market.

Poland can contribute to this regional architecture with its geological storage capacity. Current assessments estimate the potential for more than 14,000 MtCO₂. As this potential is to be further verified, it could potentially cover domestic needs and, over time, provide a regional, affordable option of CO2 storage for CEE countries. 

Moreover, successful deployment at scale depends on public acceptance. CEE countries should prioritise communication and local engagement, publish monitoring and safety indicators transparently, and clarify institutional accountability for long-term management. Such governance reduces avoidable delays and strengthens the legitimacy of investment decisions.

The CEE must present a united voice based on our common interests at the EU level.

The European Commission is preparing a legislative initiative on an internal CO₂ market and integrated infrastructure for capture, transport and storage, planned for presentation in Q3 2026. This initiative could improve interoperability, clarify regulatory oversight, and strengthen investment conditions for cross-border networks. CEE countries should develop coordinated positions on issues that are important for implementation in our region.

A common regional approach will help to ensure that EU-level rules reflect the needs of countries where industrial clusters are distant from storage basins, and where experience of deploying carbon capture is still in its early stages.

For CEE, CCS and CCU is not a side topic. It is the practical route to decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors with high process emissions, and therefore a necessary component of the EU’s pathway to climate neutrality by 2050. With national strategies, regional CO₂ infrastructure planning, targeted EU financing, and a coherent CEE contribution to the EU framework, carbon capture can keep key industries competitive while opening a new market for low carbon industrial services and attracting long term investment into the region. Successful deployment of CCS and CCU can also add another good argument in demonstrating just transition in industry is not only a possibility but very much a reality.