Big Oil's favorite climate solution is 'like trying to push water uphill,' climate chief says

LONDON — The head of the world's climate science authority has compared the rollout of carbon capture and storage (CCS) to "trying to push water uphill," questioning a technology that the oil and gas industry has long touted as integral to net-zero emission plans.

Jim Skea, the head of the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, warned on Tuesday that scaling up carbon capture still faces significant challenges.

CCS refers to a suite of technologies designed to capture carbon dioxide, typically from high-emitting activities such as power generation or industrial facilities that use fossil fuels or biomass for fuel.

The captured carbon dioxide, which can also be captured directly from the atmosphere, is then compressed and transported via pipeline, ship, rail or truck to be used in a range of applications, or permanently stored underground.

Proponents believe CCS can play an important and diverse role in meeting global energy and climate goals, while some researchers, campaigners and environmental advocacy groups argue that these technologies are not a solution.

"One of the challenges is, if you take things like solar energy, it is modular and small scale, and you can roll it through the system more quickly. Once you get past the threshold, it happens by itself," Skea said.

"CCS is much more like trying to push water uphill to get it into technological systems, it is more challenging."

Skea's comments came during the first day of International Energy Week, formerly known as International Petroleum Week — a three-day global energy conference in London that convenes senior industry figures.

There is still some "engineering problem-solving" to be done, Skea said, underlining the point that carbon capture is likely to be