10-13-2025

Enable Carbon Management Quickly – Associations Support the Federal Government’s Legislative Initiative

Associations welcome the Carbon Management legislative initiative – for climate protection, competitiveness, and investment security.
A reliable legal framework provides the backbone for a climate-neutral industry.
CO₂ transport networks and storage facilities open new opportunities for value creation in Germany.

On the occasion of the expert hearing in the German Parliament, the Deutsche Carbon Management Initiative (DCMI), the Carbon Management Allianz (CMA), and the Bundesverband Carbon Management (BVCMS) welcome the Federal Government’s plan to swiftly establish the legal foundations for carbon management in Germany. The industry is ready – now decisive political action is needed to advance carbon management in Germany and simultaneously strengthen climate protection, competitiveness, and investment.

The hearing focuses on the planned amendment of the Carbon Dioxide Storage Act (KSpG). From the associations’ perspective, its rapid adoption is a key step towards creating legal certainty for the capture, use, and storage of CO₂ in Germany and integrating the country into the European market.

“With the proposed legislation, Germany will finally make legal what has long been part of the climate protection toolkit in other countries: the capture, storage, and utilization of CO₂. This will give Germany greater flexibility in achieving its climate targets and open new investment opportunities for climate technologies ‘Made in Germany’,” says Dr. Timm Kehler, Chairman of Die Gas- und Wasserstoffwirtschaft e.V. “As an industry, we want to contribute our extensive expertise in pipeline transport and commodity trading to combine climate protection with the preservation of jobs in energy-intensive sectors. The hydrogen ramp-up will also benefit, since CCS makes the production of low-carbon hydrogen at competitive prices achievable.” Die Gas- und Wasserstoffwirtschaft e.V. is the supporting organization of the Deutsche Carbon Management Initiative (DCMI).

Carbon management is considered a crucial instrument for decarbonizing industrial processes, particularly in sectors with unavoidable emissions such as cement, lime, steel, and chemicals. “A clear carbon management strategy will strengthen Germany as an industrial location and make a central contribution to climate protection,” emphasizes Markus Rosenthal, Managing Director of the Bundesverband Carbon Management (BVCMS). Without the capture, use, or storage of CO₂, German and European climate targets will not be achievable – as highlighted by the IPCC and numerous scientific studies.

At the same time, carbon management presents an industrial policy opportunity: investments in capture technologies, transport networks, and storage infrastructure can create a new industrial value chain, fostering innovation and securing skilled jobs. “For planned investments to be realized and reach final investment decisions (FIDs), more than just the proposed legal framework is needed. This step is long overdue, but the crucial point is to establish reliable funding and financing instruments in close dialogue with industry,” explains Georg Ehrmann, Managing Director of the Carbon Management Allianz (CMA). “Carbon contracts for difference are an important element in this regard. At the same time, planning and permitting procedures must be accelerated, transport and storage infrastructure developed, and European cooperation strengthened – only then will carbon management become a true industrial project serving climate protection, innovation, and competitiveness.”

Germany now has the opportunity to take a leading role in developing CO₂ infrastructure and make up lost ground. While other European countries are already constructing pipelines, terminals, and storage projects, the current legislative initiative offers the chance to catch up and advance domestic projects more quickly. However, this requires speed, planning certainty, and European cooperation – otherwise, Germany risks remaining an observer rather than a driver of industrial transformation.

The associations therefore support the Federal Government’s plans and call for the legal foundations and political framework for carbon management to be completed within this year. Only through an integrated approach encompassing CO₂ capture, transport, utilization, and storage can Germany assume a leading role in European carbon management – strengthening climate protection, industrial competitiveness, and energy security alike.

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