Public perception of CCUS

This paper is an outcome of the Working Group (WG) on public perception of CCUS, set up by DG ENER in 2023, as a follow-up to the 2022 CCUS Forum1 and anticipating the development of the EU’s strategy, currently announced as the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy (hereafter, the Strategy). The aim of this WG is to support the European Commission (hereafter, the Commission) by studying and communicating how public perception of and engagement with CCUS emerge, and what role they play in delivering CCUS in the EU. The main objective of this WG is to contribute to the upcoming Commission’s Communication on the Strategy, expected by the end of 2023, by providing the Commission with recommendations on accounting for public perception of CCUS in the Strategy. This paper aims to present the main concepts and the state of knowledge on public perception of CO2 capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) and technology-based carbon dioxide removals (CDRs) in the EU, by building up on discussions hold during the Working Group meetings and on existing literature.