Carbon Capture Coalition Endorses the Bipartisan Coordinated Action to Capture Harmful (CATCH) Emissions Act
May 25, 2021 | Legislation
House Bill Addresses Key Gaps in Carbon Management Priorities, Complementing Bipartisan Legislation Introduced Earlier This Year
WASHINGTON, DC – The Carbon Capture Coalition today endorsed the bipartisan Coordinated Action to Capture Harmful (CATCH) Emissions Act, which addresses key policy measures that complement the critical provisions laid out in a previous package of bipartisan legislation introduced this Congress and subsequently prioritized in President Biden’s American Jobs Plan. The bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by a diverse group of members committed to carbon management policy led by Representatives Tim Ryan (D-OH), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH), Cheri Bustos (D-IL), Tim Walberg (R-MI), Marc Veasey (D-TX), David McKinley (R-WV), Susan Wild (D-PA) and Kelly Armstrong (R-ND).
“The introduction of the CATCH Act rounds out the portfolio of carbon management provisions included in broadly bipartisan legislation already introduced in this Congress, which together encompass the broader suite of federal policies needed to realize economywide deployment of carbon capture and removal technologies on the scale necessary to meet midcentury climate goals,” said Coalition Director Brad Crabtree.
This new legislation fills remaining policy gaps by providing a critical boost in federal Section 45Q tax credit values for carbon capture from industrial facilities and power plants. The CATCH Act establishes the following credit levels:
- An $85 per metric ton credit level for industrial and power generation facilities seeking to securely store captured CO2 in saline geologic formations; and
- $60 per metric ton for storage in oil and gas fields and for the beneficial utilization of captured carbon to manufacture low and zero-carbon fuels, chemicals, building products, advanced materials and other products of economic value.
Recent analysis by the Rhodium Group underscores the potentially transformative impact of key provisions in the CATCH Act. Together with direct pay and a ten-year extension of 45Q, the increased credit values provided for in this bill would result in an estimated 212-252 million metric tons of carbon capture capacity by 2035 in the U.S. industrial sector alone. Additionally, higher 45Q values lead to increases in capture capacity of up to 61 percent at hydrogen plants, 79 percent at refineries, and 386 percent at cement facilities. Without these provisions, the Rhodium Group finds no carbon capture deployment at domestic iron and steel plants. The projected $12-15 billion in total investment in through 2035 translates into an estimated 60,700-78,600 additional job-years over the time period.
The largest sources of industrial carbon emissions, such as steel, cement, chemicals and refining, as well as power generation, feature lower concentrations of CO2, thus increasing the per-ton costs of capture. This makes higher credit values for 45Q critical to incentivizing the widescale adoption of carbon capture technologies in these sectors. Federal investment in industrial decarbonization is key to American prosperity and to putting domestic industry firmly on the path toward deep emissions reductions, retaining and creating high-wage jobs, and continued technology leadership and economic competitiveness.
In addition to establishing higher credit values for industrial facilities and power plants, this bipartisan legislation eliminates the annual CO2 capture thresholds in the 45Q program to enable all industrial facilities, power plants and future direct air capture plants to participate and qualify for the credit. These thresholds are arbitrary, serve no policy purpose and reduce the overall technology innovation and emissions reduction potential of the 45Q incentive. Based on 2019 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency data, approximately 54 percent of power plants and 75 percent of industrial facilities fall below eligibility thresholds, and many direct air capture and carbon utilization projects deploying emerging technologies simply lack the scale to meet these requirements. Eliminating thresholds under 45Q would foster greater carbon capture, direct air capture and carbon utilization project development, technology innovation and cost reductions across sectors, as we work to meet net-zero emissions targets.
“The introduction of the CATCH Act, together with previous complementary bipartisan bills, demonstrates the extraordinary momentum and support—from the Biden Administration to members of Congress from across the political spectrum and every region of the country—to bolster federal incentives and funding for carbon capture, removal, utilization, transport and storage,” said Crabtree. “This portfolio of policy proposals, if enacted, would represent the most comprehensive and ambitious carbon management policy agenda in the world today—solidifying carbon capture’s vital role in putting our nation on track to reach net-zero emissions by midcentury, while safeguarding and creating domestic jobs that pay family-sustaining wages and fostering continued American technology leadership.”
Read a section-by-section on the bill here.
Find the bill text here.
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The Carbon Capture Coalition is a nonpartisan collaboration of more than 80 businesses and organizations building federal policy support for economywide deployment of carbon capture, removal, transport, utilization, and storage. Our mission is to reduce carbon emissions to meet midcentury climate goals, foster domestic energy and industrial production, and support a high-wage jobs base through the adoption of carbon capture technologies. Convened by the Great Plains Institute, Coalition membership includes industry, energy, and technology companies; energy and industrial labor unions; and conservation, environmental, and energy policy organizations.
Statements on the Bill from Supportive Organizations
Don Gaston, President & CEO, Prairie State Generating Company
“The bi-partisan support of the 45Q and 48A tax credits have opened the door and created real opportunity for making commercial-scale carbon capture projects a reality in the United States. The increased 45Q credit levels for the energy and industrial sectors substantially broadens the opportunity for funding and building carbon capture infrastructure in this country. The establishment of a direct pay option levels the playing field in the carbon capture arena by providing non-taxable entities, such as public power entities and rural electric cooperatives, an equal incentive mechanism.”
Rich Nolan, President & CEO, National Mining Association
“Carbon capture remains an absolutely essential technology as part of the world’s race to control emissions and U.S. leadership is sorely needed to advance the technology and accelerate its deployment to the rest of the world. Increasing the credit value for 45Q projects while eliminating annual CO2 capture thresholds for power, industrial, carbon utilization and direct air capture projects are obvious, important actions Congress can take right now to drive progress. This bipartisan effort is smart, tangible legislation Congress should embrace. Doing so will spur investment in essential projects and create the foundation for a thriving, world-leading industry producing global solutions.”
Lee Beck, International Director, Carbon Capture, Clean Air Task Force
“Carbon capture is critical to decarbonizing our global energy system, and its momentum in the U.S. is at an all-time high. We are thrilled to see new bipartisan carbon capture champions Rep. Ryan and Gonzalez introduce this bill, which is an important piece of the puzzle to improve the current U.S. policy landscape for carbon capture, removal, and storage deployment. It also aligns with President Biden’s American Jobs Plan and builds on the existing 45Q enhancement bills and the SCALE Act to invest in CO2 transport and storage. Together, they form the first-ever comprehensive carbon capture, removal, and storage commercialization policy package and could grow U.S. carbon management capacity 13-fold by the mid-2030s, according to our own analysis”
Tom Dower, VP Public Policy, LanzaTech
“LanzaTech thanks the bipartisan sponsors for introducing such important and timely legislation recognizing the critical role that carbon capture and utilization can play in reducing carbon emissions. Such policies are imperative for scaling up and deploying LanzaTech’s carbon recycling technologies in the US and exporting them globally.”
Claude Letourneau, President & CEO, Svante Inc.
“Svante applauds the introduction of The CATCH Act. As a cutting-edge carbon capture technology provider, Svante understands firsthand the importance of monetizing carbon through the tax code. Raising the level of 45Q to $60 per ton of CO2 for utilization and $85 per ton of CO2 for geological storage is essential to accelerate the deployment of CCUS projects across the U.S., especially in the hard-to-abate industrial sector. As the International Energy Agency confirmed yet again in its most recent report, rapid deployment of cost-effective CCUS technology is a critical measure to achieve net-zero global emissions by 2050. Svante thanks Reps. Tim Ryan, Anthony Gonzalez, Cheri Bustos, Tim Walberg, Marc Veasey, David McKinley, Susan Wild and Kelly Armstrong for their leadership on this important issue.”
Michele Stockwell, Executive Director, Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) Action
“BPC Action applauds this bipartisan effort that will help drive deployment of carbon capture technologies, a needed component for modernizing our energy system. This bill’s adjustments to the 45Q tax credit ensure that a wider variety of commercially viable technologies and business models can participate in reducing emissions. I am pleased to see members of Congress working together to form innovative policies like this one.”
Shannon Heyck-Williams, Director of Climate and Energy Policy, National Wildlife Federation
“Carbon capture, use, and storage provide a promising way for American industries to cut their total carbon pollution and seize market opportunities for innovative new products made out of captured carbon,” said Shannon Heyck-Williams, director of climate and energy policy at the National Wildlife Federation. “We can’t realize this future without more federal support, and we need to ensure publicly funded projects thoughtfully consider local impacts. We appreciate the leadership of Reps. Ryan and Gonzalez in proposing increased incentives for carbon capture, safe storage, and use — especially in industrial settings — and in making these and direct air capture projects better able to qualify for federal support.”
Bob Perciasepe, President, C2ES
“The 45Q tax credit has proven to be an enormously influential incentive for the deployment of carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) projects, as almost half of all global projects since 2008 are located in the U.S. However, the current pace of CCUS deployment will not be sufficient to meet our climate goals. By increasing the credit value, this legislation would close the financing gap for more projects, especially in crucial, hard-to-decarbonize sectors. Eliminating the capture thresholds can also help scale financing for nascent technologies such as Direct Air Capture (DAC), and increase the number of these projects, which can drive down the costs of future projects through learning and economies of scale.”
Heather Reams, Executive Director, Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions
“This legislation increases the credit value of each ton of CO2 captured and removes arbitrary limits set by Washington on how much carbon needs to be captured to participate in the 45Q tax credit. Thank you to Reps. Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH) and Tim Ryan (D-OH), Tim Walberg (R-MI), Cheri Bustos (D-IL), David McKinley (R-WV), Marc Veasey (D-TX), Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) and Susan Wild (D-PA) for their bipartisan work to enhance the 45Q tax credit, which will further incentivize businesses to invest in carbon capture technology—reducing U.S. emissions and generating more innovation and exportation of American made products that make our air cleaner.”
Rich Powell, Executive Director, ClearPath Action
“The 45Q tax incentive will continue to play a huge role in decarbonization, clean investment across the country, and American job growth,” said Rich Powell, Executive Director, ClearPath Action. “Expanding the 45Q credit could drive deep reductions in power plants and industrial facilities across more than 30 states. We are talking nearly 4 gigatons of CO2 emissions reduced by 2050 — possibly more with an increase in the value of the credit. That’s the equivalent of offsetting roughly 5% of the total emissions we’ll need to reduce over the next 3 decades from this single tax incentive.”
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Director of the Climate and Energy Program, Third Way
“Study after study has reinforced how critical carbon capture will be to reaching our emissions targets, particularly for the industrial sector. This adjustment to the 45Q tax credit will make it possible for more facilities, including cement plants and steel mills, to move forward with carbon capture projects that will keep the US on track toward its climate goals while keeping American industries and workers competitive in the global economy.”
Thad Hill, CEO, Calpine
“Decarbonization of the economy is going to require significant electrification. Firm, non duration limited capacity, is critical for supporting the reliability of the electric grid. Supporting the deployment of CCS technology to our natural gas fleet is a prudent and immediately actionable policy.”
Emily Skor, CEO, Growth Energy
“Carbon capture is a universally supported piece of the climate debate and an important tool to reach net-zero carbon emissions that includes the agriculture and ethanol industries in the process,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “The legislation incentivizes industrial facilities to capture and store carbon, and I applaud Reps. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) and Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio) for promoting forward-thinking technologies that contribute to reducing our nation’s carbon footprint while supporting rural economies.”
Bruce Rastetter, CEO, Summit Agricultural Group
“Summit Carbon Solutions is working with a variety of industrial companies across the Midwestern United States, including biorefiners, ammonia producers, power plants, and others, to capture and store their carbon dioxide emissions. The 45Q tax credit is the primary driver to implement carbon capture and increasing the value of the credit to $85 per ton of CO2 will provide sufficient incentive for many industries to capture carbon that would otherwise be emitted. Making carbon capture economically viable for more industries will enhance their long term sustainability, while creating high paying jobs and boosting economic growth.”
James Slevin, President, Utility Workers Union of America
“We are hopeful energy infrastructure investments like the 45Q tax credits, which enjoy broad, bipartisan and bicameral support, can be put to work soon to lower cost barriers and make it easier to adopt carbon capture technology. Thank you Representatives Ryan, Gonzalez, Bustos, Walberg, Veasey, McKinley, Wild and Armstrong for leading the conversation about the need for these kinds of incentives in the U.S. House.”
Sean O’Neill, Senior Vice-Preisdent, Government Affairs, Portland Cement Association
“The Portland Cement Association supports the goals of Congress to increase and expand the 45Q carbon capture credit to help industrial manufacturers reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Our members are proud of their commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, but that will require help from the federal government, and improving this tax credit is essential to that effort. We encourage Congress to pass commonsense changes to the tax code to help manufacturers with this global problem.”
Christina DeConcini, Director of Government Affairs, World Resources Institute
“Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle recognize that policies to reduce emissions, including the use of carbon capture, and removal of atmospheric CO2 will be required to address climate change. Effective federal incentives for carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) and direct air capture (DAC) are critical to achieving our climate goals. This legislation would be an important step in improving the efficacy and impact of the 45Q tax credit by eliminating project thresholds and increasing the credit value for carbon capture, utilization, and storage, which will be essential to decarbonizing the industrial sector, as a complement to efforts that would increase the credit value for DAC.”
Brad Markell Executive Director Industril Union Council, AFL-CIO
“Accelerating the large-scale deployment of carbon capture, removal, utilization, transport and storage technologies is critical to meeting President Biden’s goals of reaching net-zero emissions in the power sector by 2035 and economywide by 2050. The increased credit values for carbon capture at industrial facilities and power plants offered in this bipartisan bill enable the deployment of these technologies on the scale necessary to reach our midcentury climate goals, preserve existing energy and industrial employment and create many new high-wage jobs that American families count on. Together with the inclusion of labor and domestic content standards, the provisions outlined in this bill will help put American industry firmly on the path toward deep emissions reductions, and continue to promote American technology leadership and economic competitiveness.”
Don Maley, CEO, Lake Charles Methanol
“Lake Charles Methanol fully supports legislation aligning 45Q tax credit values more closely with the actual costs of carbon sequestration from industrial facilities. Raising the tax credit value from $50 to $85 a ton for non-eor sequestration and from $35 to $60 for eor and carbon utilization will jump start investment in CCS and catalyze projects like Lake Charles Methanol to reach financial close this year. Thousands of jobs will result from this game-changing legislation, while decarbonizing energy intensive industries in the process.”
Dr. S. Julio Friedmann, Senior Research Scholar, Columbia University
“Deep decarbonization, especially for industry, requires rapid deployment of carbon capture as part of the climate counterstrike. The 45Q credit enhancements proposed in this bill would drive new projects into the market, reduce conventional and carbon pollution, create high quality jobs, and support communities at risk.”
Darrell K. Smith, President & CEO, National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA)
“The National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA) supports the proposed legislation to enhance carbon capture credits. Storing CO2 supports the administration’s climate goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The carbon capture credits provide assistance to explore projects that were previously not viable. In particular, the elimination of the annual CO2 capture thresholds expands opportunities to smaller facilities to develop alternative management options.”
Charlene Russell, Chief Commercial Officer, Carbon America
“Together, these climate-smart provisions will accelerate investment in carbon capture technologies and projects across the country by making it easier for businesses of all types and sizes to reduce their carbon emissions cost-effectively.”
David Slater, Incoming President and CEO, and Chairman, DT Midstream INGAA Board of Directors
“Achieving carbon neutrality requires the development of innovative energy technologies and carbon capture, utilization and storage provides a critical pathway for reducing emissions across sectors. This legislation represents a significant federal investment that will open up the opportunities for capture projects of all sizes and help reduce costs in a way that will meaningfully contribute to future affordability. We commend Representatives Ryan, Gonzalez, Bustos, Walberg, Veasey, McKinley, Wild and Armstrong for advancing this meaningful climate policy in a thoughtful and bipartisan fashion.”
Randy Beck, Vice President, Waste Management Renewable Energy
“Over 95 percent of municipal solid waste landfills are ineligible for participation in the section 45Q program because they do not meet applicable emissions thresholds previously established by Congress. Eliminating or reducing these thresholds will accelerate the deployment of carbon capture technologies throughout our sector, assisting Waste Management’s goal of offsetting four times the greenhouse gas emissions we generate through our operations by 2038. We commend Reps. Ryan, Gonzalez, Bustos, and Walberg for introducing this important bipartisan bill and look forward to working with them to accelerate the deployment of infrastructure needed to tackle global climate challenges.”
Phil Smith, Director of Communications and Government Affairs, United Mine Workers of America (UMWA)
“The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) strongly supports the Value Increase for the 45Q Tax Credit. The provisions in this legislation address remaining 45Q provisions that are not yet in bipartisan legislation and it builds upon other carbon capture and storage legislation which has been introduced this Congress. Increasing the value for industrial and power plant carbon capture to the levels in this bill will be transformative for deployment, and it focuses on the very sectors with the highest concentration of high-wage jobs in our economy. This is the most important carbon management bill from a jobs standpoint to be introduced in this session thus far. Mitigating global greenhouse gas emissions to the levels needed to slow climate change simply cannot be done without CCS deployment in the United States and globally. Whatever Congress can do to incentivize more rapid deployment of CCS on a utility-plant scale is critical to both maintaining good jobs and addressing greenhouse gas emissions.“
Jon Wood, President, EnergyBlue Project
Carbon capture is an essential element of any realistic strategy to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by midcentury. The EnergyBlue Project thus commends Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH) and Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH) for their introduction of the bipartisan CATCH Act. Carbon capture is, through its ability to achieve carbon mitigation in both the power generation and industrial sectors and carbon removal in combination with bioenergy and via direct air capture, the most versatile climate solution available to us. As identified by the President’s American Jobs Plan, it is a critical investment in American infrastructure, American workers, and American climate and technology leadership. The CATCH Act demonstrates how we can accelerate our efforts to decarbonize our economy without turning upside down the lives of millions of American workers, their families, and the communities in which they live and work; how we can all the more aggressively move forward in addressing the climate crisis without leaving hard-working Americans behind.
Allyson Anderson Book, Vice President Energy Transition, Baker Hughes
“Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) will be a critical component of the emerging lower carbon energy system and Baker Hughes supports this effort to enhance the financial incentives necessary to bring CCUS to scale.”
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