By – Mr. Yashodhan Ramteke, Chief Executive Officer & Director, EcoGuard Global

With the Union Budget announcing a commitment of ₹20,000 crores over five years to Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS), we see a major shift in the way the country is planning to address the challenge of decarbonisation in sectors such as power, steel, cement, refineries, and chemicals. The scheme has the potential to take CCUS from the pilot stage to a viable industrial solution, which would be beneficial in reducing transition risk in the country’s journey towards the development of its domestic carbon market. Post the renewable energy push that resulted in achieving our NDC targets earlier than anticipated, the next focus area naturally flows into CCUS which will help the country to decarbonize its hard to abate sectors.

This move also provides a strong base to the green economy of the country by allowing the reduction of emissions without impacting the level of industrial output, which is critical to maintaining the country’s global competitiveness. With the country increasingly aligning itself to the European Union’s carbon standards, investments in CCUS, MRV technologies, and outcome-based incentives would make the country’s industry not only ‘decarbonisation-ready’ but also ‘market-aligned,’ which would be critical to the country’s Net Zero ambitions.”