The European Commission has approved €260 million in funding to support Belgium’s large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) initiative to reduce industrial greenhouse gas emissions.
The funding will support the Kairos@C project, a joint initiative involving Air Liquide Large Industry NV and BASF Antwerp NV.
The decision, taken under EU state aid rules, allows Belgium to provide financial support to the project as part of broader efforts to decarbonize industrial activity.
According to the European Commission, this initiative is in line with Europe’s climate goals by supporting the development of integrated carbon capture and storage value chains.
What is carbon capture and storage?
Carbon capture and storage is a climate mitigation technology that aims to prevent carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere.
In a typical CCS system, CO₂ produced during industrial processes or energy generation is captured at the source, compressed, and transported to a storage location, usually via pipeline or ship.
The gas is then injected deep underground into geological formations, such as depleted oil and gas fields or saline aquifers, where it can be permanently contained. These storage locations are monitored to ensure long-term stability.
CCS is widely considered an important tool for reducing emissions from heavy industries such as chemicals, cement, steel, and refining.
Many of these sectors inherently rely on high-temperature processes and chemical reactions that produce CO₂, so eliminating emissions through electrification alone can be difficult.
By capturing emissions that would otherwise be emitted, CCS can help industrial facilities transition to low-carbon production while maintaining critical manufacturing capacity.
Understanding emissions from industrial production
The Kairos@C project will focus on capturing greenhouse gas emissions from both companies’ existing industrial plants in Antwerp. These facilities produce hydrogen, ammonia, and ethylene oxide.
The plan is for the carbon dioxide captured at the plant to be transported to a permanent underground storage facility in the North Sea.
The project aims to establish a cross-border CCS value chain operating at industrial scale by combining capture, transport and storage infrastructure.
The project is expected to avoid approximately 20 million net tons of greenhouse gas emissions over 15 years. The system is also intended to support the production of low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia.
Innovation Fund support and rising costs
Kairos@C was selected in the EU Innovation Fund’s first call for large-scale projects in 2020 and received a grant of over €365 million.
The Innovation Fund supports demonstration projects that introduce innovative low-carbon technologies across Europe’s industrial and energy sectors.
Its first funding round selected seven projects covering a variety of sectors aimed at reducing Europe’s emissions.
However, in recent years, business costs have increased due to factors such as inflation. According to the committee, these cost increases meant the project could not proceed without additional support.
Belgian funding structure
The newly approved 260 million euro measure will be financed through the Flemish region’s budget.
Support will be provided partly through direct investment grants and partly through performance-based payments. Each beneficiary will receive an initial grant of €30 million. Additional support will be distributed through 10 annual payments of €10 million per beneficiary.
These annual payments depend on whether the project achieves minimum greenhouse gas emission reductions.
By supporting the Kairos@C initiative, this measure aims to demonstrate how carbon capture and storage can be deployed in industrial operations, while contributing to Belgium’s climate change goals.
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