Austria moves to reverse CO2 storage ban, opening path for BECCS and negative emissions

Austria's federal government has introduced a draft bill to lift its 2011 ban on geological carbon dioxide storage. The proposed Carbon Dioxide Storage Act is designed to support hard-to-abate industries like cement, steel, and paper, and to create a route for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) to deliver negative emissions. Storage would be capped at 5% of Austria's total greenhouse gas emissions, keeping the policy targeted rather than a broad license for fossil fuels. The draft law works alongside the EU Emissions Trading System, giving industrial emitters a financial incentive to store CO2 instead of buying allowances. For BECCS operators, the combination of biogenic carbon capture and geological storage could unlock negative-emission credits, which are increasingly valued in voluntary and compliance markets. Austria estimates domestic storage potential of 150 to 250 million tonnes in hydrocarbon structures and over 1 billion tonnes in saline aquifers, far exceeding the proposed cap. Public consultation runs until the end of October 2026, after which the package goes to Parliament. If passed, Austria would join a small group of EU countries actively enabling geological storage for residual emissions. The cap and sectoral focus suggest a deliberate attempt to avoid the pitfalls of unrestricted CCS expansion.