Carbon capture, utilisation and storage scenarios for the Gulf Cooperation Council region: A Delphi-based foresight study

Capture, utilisation and storage of carbon dioxide resulting from combusting fossil fuels is gaining attention around the world as a means of addressing climate change. This paper aims to present a set of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) scenarios for the hydrocarbon-rich Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region through to the year 2030, with the ultimate goal of stimulating constructive debate and discussion at both policy and academic levels. This will also be beneficial in terms of identifying future opportunities and threats so that better-informed policy action can be taken today. Four explorative scenarios have been developed using the Delphi technique, and they represent a joint creation of about one hundred highly-informed individuals from diverse professional backgrounds.

► We present a set of CCUS scenarios for the hydrocarbon-rich GCC region through to the year 2030, with the aim of stimulating constructive debate at both policy and academic levels.
► The CCUS scenarios, developed using the Delphi technique, represent the collective contributions of one hundred highly-informed individuals.
► These scenarios, the first of their kind in terms of scope and scale, have identified key policy challenges and opportunities for the emergence of this clean energy industry.
► At the GCC region, the successful emergence of the CCUS sector is largely dependent upon the cost of CO2 capture and the existence of a supportive regulatory and policy environment.
► It is hoped that this study will pave the way for further research that could define suitable policy and regulatory packages for possible pathways towards CCUS development in the world.