Recommendations for the CO₂ markets and transportation infrastructure: Response to the European Commission’s questionnaire

The Zero Emissions Platform (ZEP) submitted its response to the EU public consultation on a forthcoming legislative initiative on CO₂ markets and transportation infrastructure. This document was accompanied by an annex, where ZEP outlines its recommendations to enable the timely development of CO₂ transport and storage infrastructure in line with the EU climate objectives, while ensuring that the regulatory framework remains proportionate, adaptable to market maturity and conducive to effective competition over time. 

About ZEP’s questionnaire response 

Drawing on the expertise and insights from the industrial carbon management community, the response to the questions supports the following recommendations: 

• Anchor the legislative initiative on a dual legal basis under Articles 192 (environment) and 194 TFEU (energy)  
• Establish a clear governance framework and designation of NRAs  
• Apply targeted third-party access regulation by asset type, reflecting economic and technical characteristics 
• Use negotiated TPA for CO₂ storage, with regulatory oversight 
• Avoid unbundling requirements in early phases, combined with National Regulatory Authority (NRA) oversight and an EU reassessment clause 
• Ensure tariff transparency and non-discriminatory access 
• Adopt a multimodal framework for CO₂ transport 
• Introduce a CCS Availability Guarantee Mechanism to support early movers 

More details on these recommendations can be found in the annex.