In times of increasing climate challenges, the concept permanent carbon removal is becoming a key pillar of the European Union's efforts to achieve carbon neutrality. The recent study entitled "Decarbonisation in the EU: Carbon removals in the EU: Review of current carbon removal projects and early-stage financing offers an important insight into this area. Published in 2025 by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Climate Action and Ramboll Management Consulting, with contributions from Evert Witteveen, Christopher Marton, Nicolas Bert, Jacob Steinmann and Jonathan Gardiner, this publication focuses on the environment and ecology.

The study specifically addresses permanent carbon removal, which is defined in the EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework, 2024) as "any practice or process that, under normal circumstances and with appropriate management practices, captures and stores atmospheric or biogenic carbon for several centuries, including permanently chemically bound carbon in products, and which is not combined with enhanced hydrocarbon extraction"This definition emphasizes the long-term nature and environmental integrity of these solutions, which are designed to have a truly lasting impact on reducing atmospheric carbon.

While there is currently no uniform classification of permanent CO2 removal (CDR) technologies, the report focuses on several key activities and approaches. These include:

• Biochar carbon removal: This method uses specially treated charcoal to store carbon in the soil.
• Biogenic carbon capture and storage (BioCCS): The study here specifically focuses on bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), where the carbon released from biomass during energy production is captured and permanently stored.
• Direct Carbon Capture and Storage (DACCS): This technology is designed to directly capture CO2 from ambient air and store it.
• In-situ mineralisation: These are processes in which carbon is stored in mineral formations directly in the ground.
• Ex-situ mineralisation and enhanced rock weathering (ERW): These methods involve chemical processes that convert CO2 into stable mineral forms, either off-site or through accelerated weathering of rocks.
• Ocean approaches: This includes various strategies using the oceans to capture and store carbon, such as Direct Ocean Capture (DOC) a increase in ocean alkalinity (OAE – Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement).

The study is relevant to a wide range of topics and areas. It deals with adaptation to climate change, which is essential in view of global warming. It also deals in detail with carbon capture and storage as a key technology. The central objective is to support carbon neutrality in the European Union. An important aspect is also Community certification for carbon removal projects, which ensures credibility and transparency. The study has a direct impact on EU environmental policy, shaping the future direction in this area. Also of importance is the topic financing these costly but necessary projects, as well as the need for extensive research and development to improve and scale these technologies.

The full publication was officially made available on the EU publications website on 21 August 2025, confirming its timeliness and relevance for the ongoing debate on climate action. The publication's ISBN is 978-92-68-31117-2 and the DOI is 10.2834/0004994.

An overview of current projects and analysis of early stage financing in the field of carbon removal, as provided by this study, is key to understanding the current state and future needs of Europe in the fight against climate change. It provides valuable information for policymakers, researchers and investors seeking to support the development and implementation of sustainable carbon reduction solutions. JRi