Update on NER300

Last month the European Commission issued a working document providing an update on the status of award decisions under the EU NER300 funding program for CCS and renewables projects (for more on NER300 see ZEP to Rescue CCS in Europe?, 3/1).  To date, the Commission (along with the European Investment Bank, or EIB) has sold 140 million of the initial 200 million EUAs available for monetization, raising approximately €1.14 billion ($1.4 billion).  The Commission ultimately expects to raise between €1.3 and 1.5 billion for first round awards, 60% of which will go to support two or three CCS demonstration projects.  (NER300 was originally expected to generate approximately €3.3 billion in first round funds with the majority going to support 8 CCS projects, but this estimate has shrunk by half as allowance prices have plummeted.)

According to the Commission, the top three CCS candidates for round one funding include (in order of selection):

1. Don Valley Power Project (UK)--Features pre-combustion capture technology at a 900 MW coal-fired IGCC power plant, with offshore storage
2. Belchatow CCS Project (Poland)--Post-combustion capture at an 868 MW coal-fired plant, with onshore storage
3. Green Hydrogen (Netherlands)--Industrial application at a hydrogen plant with shoreline storage

Final award decisions are expected by the end of this year.  A second funding round will follow to close out the program.