CALGARY, AB, July 7, 2026 /CNW/ - Using Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) technology as a key climate policy is likely to fall short of expectations, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.

"The technology available to us today, and our knowledge and historical use of carbon capture technology calls into question its use as a core climate policy for both the federal and Alberta governments," said Kenneth P. Green, a senior fellow with the Fraser Institute and author of The Challenges in Scaling Up Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage Technologies.

The study finds that scaling-up Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage technology (CCUS)—as is being proposed in Alberta's Pathways project as a condition of the federal government's approval of a new oil pipeline—is likely not to succeed for several key reasons.

Historically, most applications of CCUS have been developed to enhance oil and gas recovery rather than to store carbon. This means the technology is not being used for its intended purpose and results likely won't be as successful as envisioned.

In fact, where large-scale CCUS projects have been built, they have fallen short of predicted capture targets and there have been significant cost overruns.

What's more, scaling-up CCUS technology to capture a meaningful amount of carbon would require substantial infrastructure to be built, including a large amount of pipelines, which will likely face regulatory, legal and even political barriers.

"The idea that carbon capture, utilization and storage will provide large-scale carbon reduction is unlikely to be as successful as its proponents envision, at least with the technology as it exists today," Green said.

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The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal and Halifax and ties to a global network of think-tanks in 87 countries. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for Canadians, their families and future generations by studying, measuring and broadly communicating the effects of government policies, entrepreneurship and choice on their well-being. To protect the Institute's independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit www.fraserinstitute.org

SOURCE The Fraser Institute