More than half of announced carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) projects worldwide have yet to move beyond the early planning stages, raising questions about the true commercial potential of the global CCUS pipeline.
According to analysis from US-based Welligence Energy Analytics, 55% of planned CO2 capture capacity has yet to move past the planning stage, with limited signs of progress.
The findings come as the number of new project announcements continues to decline, suggesting a slowdown in momentum despite ongoing government support and lots of investment commitments.
A total of 498 capture projects have been announced globally to date (excluding cancelled or ceased efforts), with a combined capacity of 501.5 million tonnes per year. However, the vast majority remain at the announcement or pre-engineering and design stage. Only 15 projects, representing 10.7 million metric tonnes per year of capacity (just over 2%) have reached final investment decision since the start of 2024.
This stalled pipeline is most apparent among early movers. Welligence found that 296.6 million tonnes per year of the announced capacity has not advanced to pre-FEED, and more than half of this is tied to projects first unveiled four or more years ago. The findings highlight the gap between policy goals and what is being delivered.
“The CCUS industry faces challenges in securing viable sources of emissions for CCUS hubs,” the report also notes.
The slowdown is not limited to legacy projects. In 2024, 35 new capture projects were announced globally, the lowest annual total since 2021, with 2025 expected to see even less activity. Most new announcements are focused on decarbonising power generation, ammonia production, and refining.
This situation is backed up by the International Energy Agency, which reported last week that just eight new CCUS projects began operating in 2024. Most of these were relatively small in scale, with capture or storage capacities as low as 5,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
This fits with the Global CCS Institute’s 2024 Global Status Report, which notes that although the number of operational facilities has grown to 50 and with 44 more are under construction, a large share of projects remain stuck in early development.
In contrast to the broad stagnation on view, real-world activity has been concentrated in a handful of markets. Projects in Indonesia, the US, and the UK accounted for 64% of newly sanctioned capture capacity since the start of 2024.
This is likely due to targeted investment and policy support in these areas. Indonesia has attracted billions in CCS funding, including a $15bn commitment from energy giant ExxonMobil and a $7bn BP-led expansion at Tangguh LNG.
In the US, the 45Q tax credit remains an attractive incentive for developers, while in the UK £21.7bn ($27.3bn) in long-term government backing has helped move major cluster projects like Net Zero Teesside to financial close.
ExxonMobil is expanding its CCS footprint in the US Gulf Coast, where it now has agreements in place to store around 16 million tonnes per year of CO2 from six major emitters. The company is also planning to develop a 1.5GW data centre power plant with CCS in the region.
Yet even in active regions, carbon storage projects remain constrained by a lack of committed CO2 sources. Without firm upstream capture agreements, many storage sites have struggled to secure investment or progress to development.
Welligence states that stronger carbon markets and diversified business models will be essential if early-stage projects are to progress.
