On 5 March, Wopke Hoekstra, the European Commissioner for Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth, visited the Dutch House of Representatives to discuss the Clean Industrial Deal, which the European Commission published on 26 February 2025. Hoekstra described the package as a potential game-changer for the EU in terms of climate policy, clean industry and strategic autonomy. However, the package has only a limited focus on carbon capture and storage (CCS).

Previous acknowledgement of CCS’s importance
During his visit, Hoekstra discussed the European Commission’s work programme with several MPs. In response to questions from MP Wytske Postma (NSC), he emphasised the key role of CCS in industrial decarbonisation. It is therefore striking and perhaps somewhat concerning that this essential instrument for making industry more sustainable and competitive receives limited attention in the Clean Industrial Deal.

The European Commission has previously emphasised the crucial role of CCS in industrial decarbonisation, as reflected in the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy (2024), commonly known as the ‘CCS strategy’, and in the Net-Zero Industry Act (2023). This emphasis also justifies the EU taking an active stance in driving the development of CO₂ transport and storage.

Despite the change in the Commission at the end of 2024, it too has acknowledged the importance of CCS in achieving climate targets while maintaining industrial strength. Commissioner Hoekstra himself addressed this in his speech at a joint event hosted by the port authorities of Antwerp and Rotterdam on 14 January 2025. Moreover, the Clean Industrial Deal was designed to integrate climate objectives with industrial competitiveness under a unified strategy.

Sector must take the lead in reinforcing CCS’s role
Although the Clean Industrial Deal mentions the implementation of the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy, it does so only in the context of ‘carbon removals’. However, the decarbonisation of industry, which accounts for most CCS volumes, does not fall within this category. Notably, CCS actively prevents CO₂ from being released in the atmosphere rather than just removing it. Furthermore, the Clean Industrial Deal appears to have limited alignment with the broader objectives of the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy and the Net-Zero Industry Act.

It has since become clear that the Clean Industrial Deal adopts a technology-neutral approach, which may partly explain its limited focus on CCS.

The Netherlands is at the forefront of CCS in the EU. In its engagements with key stakeholders, including the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Dutch Ministry of Climate and Green Growth and the House of Representatives, the Dutch CCS sector must therefore take the lead in reinforcing its role in EU policy and the Clean Industrial Deal.