The most carbon?

Who’s Capturing the Most Carbon? A Global Snapshot in 2023

In the fight against climate change, every ton of carbon removed from the atmosphere counts. But who is leading the charge in carbon capture? In 2023, two countries—the United States and Brazil—stood out, accounting for nearly 60% of global carbon capture capacity.

Yet, while this progress is significant, it’s nowhere near enough. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), we must be removing 1,000 million metric tons (Mt) of CO₂ annually by 2050 to meet net-zero goals. In reality, we’re at just 55 Mt today.

The Heavy Lifters in Carbon Capture

A few nations are stepping up, but the gap remains vast:

🔵 United States: The undisputed leader, capturing 40.9% of global capacity (225 Mt).
🟢 Brazil: A distant second, at 19.3% (106 Mt)—but still ahead of many industrialized nations.
🔴 Canada & Australia: Each capturing between 4-7% of global capacity.
🟡 China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Norway, and others—each contributing a small but notable share.

Meanwhile, the rest of the world combined accounts for only 62 Mt (about 11%), highlighting the uneven distribution of carbon capture efforts.

The Reality Check: Are We Moving Fast Enough?

Despite these efforts, we are far behind where we need to be. The IEA warns that the annual growth rate of carbon capture must nearly double to stay on track for net zero by 2050. But scaling up requires:

✅ Stronger policies and incentives to encourage investment
✅ Massive infrastructure development for capture, transport, and storage
✅ International collaboration to support emerging economies in deploying carbon capture technology

The Takeaway: Is This the Climate Solution We Need?

Carbon capture isn’t a silver bullet—but it’s one of the most powerful tools we have for reducing emissions from hard-to-abate industries like steel, cement, and energy. If we’re serious about climate action, the world must go beyond its current trajectory and commit to exponential growth in carbon capture capacity.

source :

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