New project from CATF, Carbon Balance Initiative, and Bellona Europa to strengthen EU’s oil and gas accountability for CO₂ storage under Article 23
Brussels – Clean Air Task Force (CATF), Carbon Balance Initiative (CB), and Bellona Europa today launched a joint project to support and assess the effective implementation of Article 23 of the European Union’s (EU) Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA). This initiative comes at a pivotal moment as the EU seeks to balance industrial competitiveness, energy security, and decarbonisation on the path to its 2050 climate goals.
As the first regulation of its kind, the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) Article 23 introduces a requirement for oil and gas producers to contribute to the development of CO2 injection capacity in the EU. This marks a shift in climate policy, embedding responsibility within the oil and gas sector to actively support CO2 storage. However, its success hinges on strong enforcement, transparent implementation, and coordination across borders and sectors.
This collaborative project will:
- Monitor compliance and enforcement trends across Member States through an Article 23 Implementation Tracker.
- Engage policymakers, industry, and civil society through policy briefs and stakeholder workshops.
- Develop a “2030-Ready” Policy Package with recommendations for strengthening oil and gas accountability frameworks post-2030.
- Raise public awareness and drive political momentum for CO₂ storage targets and corporate accountability across the EU.
“The Net-Zero Industry Act sets an ambitious and forward-thinking target of achieving 50 million tonnes of annual CO₂ storage capacity by 2030, and achieving it is critical to decarbonising EU’s industries,” said Codie Rossi, Carbon Capture Policy Manager at CATF. “Article 23 embeds the much-needed accountability to ensure oil and gas producers contribute to developing geological CO₂ injection capacity. However, its success depends on rigorous enforcement and a transparent implementation framework that prevents loopholes and ensures compliance. This project will provide the data, analysis and oversight to ensure Article 23 delivers.”
Lina Strandvåg Nagell, Deputy Director & Head of Policy Bellona Europa: “For a successful green and just transition, we must ensure the decarbonization of harder- to-abate emissions through CCS. The CCS market is currently defined by a lack of cohesion, as well as a power imbalance across the value chain. This project seeks to ensure that we address the “chicken and egg” paradox, particularly by enforcing Article 23 in the NZIA to materialize into real injection capacity. History has shown that profit seeking businesses are rarely well-suited to regulate themselves, this project will operate as a watchdog, holding oil and gas producers accountable for their commitment under the NZIA, and beyond.”
Ingrid Sundvor, Co-founder and Executive Director at Carbon Balance Initiative, stressed the importance of looking beyond 2030: “For too long, fossil fuel producers have extracted oil and gas without responsibility for cleaning up the CO₂ their products release. Article 23 marks an important first step, but Europe cannot afford short-term thinking. Achieving the EU’s climate goals requires a long-term, durable, and self-sustaining storage market that ensures accountability well beyond 2030. That’s why we are collaborating with CATF and Bellona to shape the policies and enforcement mechanisms needed to secure long-term geological CO₂ storage capacity and drive real impact.”
As the EU strives to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, existing policies have fallen short in establishing the necessary large-scale CO2 storage infrastructure essential for a 2°C-aligned carbon budget. A massive ramping up of carbon capture and storage will be required, as evidenced by the EU’s Industrial Carbon Management Strategy’s foreseeing the need to capture and store 250 million tonnes of CO2 annually by 2050. By embedding oil and gas producer responsibility through Article 23, the EU is taking a decisive step toward decarbonisation and achieving net zero by 2050.
Through this project, CATF, CB, and Bellona will work closely with EU institutions, Member States, and ecosystem experts to support effective enforcement and set a precedent for oil and gas accountability beyond Europe.
Press Contact
Steve Reyes, Communications Manager, CATF, [email protected], +15629166463
About Clean Air Task Force
Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With more than 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.
About Carbon Balance Initiative
Carbon Balance Initiative is an NGO initiative born out of the University of Oxford, bringing academic theory to regulatory practice by aligning climate policies and oil and gas regulations with the principles of geological net zero. Working with renowned academic partners, CB delivers novel research and advocacy to support evidence-based, science-driven policy recommendations for governments, multilateral institutions, and private sector stakeholders.
About Bellona Europa
Bellona Europa is an international, independent and non-profit organisation that meets environmental and climate challenges head on. We are solutions-oriented and have a comprehensive and cross-sectoral approach to assess the economics, climate impacts and technical feasibility of necessary climate actions. To do this, we work with civil society, academia, governments, institutions, and industries.
