Creating Early Demand for CCU Chemicals
Indicative Effects of a Dedicated Carbon Capture and Utilisation Plastics Sub-Quota
Copyright: PtX Lab Lausitz
PtX Lab Analysis I 6/2026 I Topic: Sustainable Chemistry I 22 Pages
As a contribution to the Critical Chemicals Alliance's work on lead markets for clean chemicals, this PtX Lab Analysis Creating Early Demand for CCU Chemicals examines how dedicated Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) sub-quotas could create early demand for sustainable carbon products and support the scale-up of European CCU value chains.
CCU is closely linked to Power-to-X (PtX) pathways, where renewable electricity is used to produce green hydrogen via electrolysis, which is then combined with captured CO₂ to generate synthetic fuels and chemical feedstocks. These PtX-based processes enable CO₂ to be transformed into usable carbon molecules such as methanol, hydrocarbons, or intermediates for plastics production, making them a core route for defossilising the chemical industry.
Drawing on lessons from ReFuelEU Aviation and synthetic aviation fuel (eSAF) quotas, the analysis examines whether targeted demand-pull instruments can help overcome the investment barriers facing first commercial-scale CCU projects.
The PtX Lab Lausitz argues for dedicated CCU sub-quotas within general sustainable carbon quotas because EU transition scenarios show that CCU carbon demand remains structurally unavoidable for full defossilisation of the chemical sector.
The analysis finds that an illustrative early CCU plastics sub-quota of just 1.8 % across packaging, automotive and construction could create demand for around 0.7 Mt of CCU plastics by 2035, support € 8–13 billion of investment and help accelerate CCU deployment by around a decade. Estimated impacts on end-consumer prices remain marginal, with increases well below 1 % for representative products.
The findings contribute to the debate on market-pull instruments that can strengthen Europe's competitiveness, industrial resilience and long-term transition to a fossil-free chemical industry – a debate in which PtX Lab Lausitz is actively engaged as part of the Critical Chemicals Alliance's working group on lead markets.
Bibliographic data
- Publication: Creating Early Demand for CCU Chemicals. Indicative Effects of a Dedicated Carbon Capture and Utilisation Plastics Sub-Quota
- Publication date: June 2026
- Publisher: PtX Lab Lausitz – Think and Do Tank for Fuels and Basic Materials from Green Hydrogen, Calauer Straße 70, D-03048 Cottbus
- Authors: Lukas Horndasch, Dr Henrik Basche, Dr Sarah Bernhardt, Anita Demuth, Dr Stefan Günthner, Dr Harry Lehmann and Felix Schmermer
- Suggested citation: PtX Lab Lausitz (2026): Creating Early Demand for CCU Chemicals
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Sarah Bernhardt
Head of Section PtX Basic Materials
+49 173 56 150 72
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