Heavy industry remains one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise. Cement plants, steel production and chemical manufacturing all generate unavoidable process emissions that cannot simply be eliminated through electrification or renewable power alone. CAPTUS addresses this challenge by developing and demonstrating integrated carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) value chains that transform captured CO₂ into useful products, renewable energy carriers and circular industrial resources.
Rather than treating carbon dioxide as waste, CAPTUS positions CO₂ as a feedstock for future industrial systems. The project combines advanced capture technologies, renewable energy integration and innovative conversion pathways to create practical and scalable solutions for energy-intensive industries across Europe.
What is CAPTUS about?
CAPTUS focuses on one of Europe’s most pressing climate and industrial challenges: reducing emissions from hard-to-abate industries while maintaining industrial competitiveness and energy resilience.
The project develops site-specific CCU solutions tailored to the realities of industrial operations. Unlike sectors that can rapidly switch to renewable electricity, industries such as cement and steel production often generate emissions from the production process itself. CAPTUS recognises that these sectors require integrated solutions that combine carbon capture with practical pathways for CO₂ reuse and conversion.
Across multiple industrial demonstrators, the project validates different routes for transforming captured CO₂ into renewable fuels, energy carriers and other valuable products. Several of these pathways are designed to make use of surplus renewable electricity, helping to connect industrial decarbonisation with Europe’s broader clean energy transition.
Beyond the technical innovations, CAPTUS also addresses the wider conditions required for large-scale deployment. The project examines permitting and safety requirements, value chain integration, sustainability impacts, business models and economic feasibility. This ensures that the technologies developed are not only technically viable, but also commercially realistic and scalable across Europe.
A strong emphasis is placed on comparability and replication. Common assessment frameworks and optimisation activities allow project partners to evaluate results across sectors and industrial sites, helping decision makers understand where CCU solutions can deliver the greatest value.
Why CAPTUS matters
Industrial emissions account for a significant share of Europe’s greenhouse gas output, and many industrial sites cannot fully decarbonise through renewable energy adoption alone. CAPTUS contributes to closing this gap by demonstrating how carbon capture and utilisation can become a practical decarbonisation lever rather than remaining limited to isolated pilot projects.
By combining tested technologies with transparent techno-economic and sustainability assessments, the project helps build confidence among industry stakeholders, investors and policymakers. The long-term goal is to accelerate the uptake of scalable CCU solutions that support climate neutrality while strengthening Europe’s industrial base.
Co-funded by the European Union Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Program under Grant Agreement No. 101118265. Views and opinions expressed are however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA). Neither the European Union nor CINEA can be held responsible for them.
