Key aspects of the KSpTG at a glance
- Objective: The Act aims to enable the permanent underground storage of carbon dioxide and the establishment of a national CO₂ transport infrastructure. This will create a key legal prerequisite for capturing and safely storing unavoidable industrial emissions in the future.
- Legal framework: The amendment creates the first nationwide, uniform basis for the commercial use of CCS and CCU technologies. It thus closes a legal gap that previously existed in Germany's climate protection instruments.
- Infrastructure: CO₂ pipeline projects are classified as projects of overriding public interest. This is intended to speed up approval procedures.
- Scope: The scope of application is extended to transport pipelines for industrial CO₂ utilisation (CCU) and for direct CO₂ capture from the ambient air (DACCS).
- Prioritisation: Although the expansion of renewable energies continues to be a priority, the law recognises CCS as an indispensable supplement for emissions that are difficult to avoid – for example, in the cement, lime and aluminium industries – in line with the German government's 2022 evaluation report.
- Requirementsfor pipeline infrastructure
The new Carbon Dioxide Storage and Transport Act (KSpTG) primarily imposes procedural and safety requirements on CO₂ pipelines, rather than detailed pipe construction standards; the specific technical standards are largely delegated to legal regulations that are yet to be enacted. The relevant technical regulations of the German Technical and Scientific Association for Gas and Water (DVGW) are currently being developed.
Legal framework for CO₂ pipelines
- The KSpTG covers the approval, construction, operation and modification of carbon dioxide pipelines for the purpose of CCS/CCU, as well as pipelines used for both purposes (storage + utilisation).
- The construction, operation and significant modification of CO₂ pipelines are classified as being in the overriding public interest and are subject to planning approval or planning permission.
Planning and approval requirements
- • For all CO₂ pipelines (except those used purely for internal operations), size-dependent tests are required in accordance with the UVPG; the pipelines are considered independent projects subject to an environmental impact assessment.
- The Actprovides for a uniform approval procedure; CO₂ pipelines can be approved in conjunction with other projects (e.g. offshore wind connections, empty conduits).
Technical safety requirements
- TheKSpTG expressly authorises the Federal Government to issue regulations specifying requirements for the planning, technical safety, construction and operation of carbon dioxide pipelines and to regulate a corresponding verification procedure.
- Thesetypically include specifications for pressure ratings, materials, corrosion protection, monitoring, compressors, pressure boosters, control and measuring systems; under certain conditions, these systems may be exempted from the planning approval procedure if they are subject to their own approval requirements.
Route selection, bundling and reallocation
- Inthecase of parallel routing with hydrogen pipelines, it is legally assumed that the CO₂ pipeline will not cause any additional adverse effects; this reduces the scope of the assessment.
- Thelaw allows existing gas, hydrogen and product pipelines to be converted to CO₂ transport through a notification procedure.
Access rules and pipeline design
The existing KSpG already contains a regime for non-discriminatory connection and access to CO₂ networks. This is to apply to CO₂ transported from CCS and, in future, explicitly also from CCU, thus ensuring the utilisation of the infrastructure.
However, the properties of CO₂ as a transport medium place special demands on safe pipeline operation. CO₂ is usually transported under high pressure in liquid or so-called dense phase so that large quantities can flow efficiently through pipelines. Pressure and temperature must be maintained very precisely to prevent uncontrolled phase change and severe cooling in the pipeline. It is particularly critical that, in the event of a pipeline rupture, the pressure and state of CO₂ change differently than in the case of natural gas, so that material selection and wall thicknesses must be specifically designed to prevent rapid crack propagation. In addition, depending on its origin, CO₂ may contain various accompanying substances that influence flow behaviour or cause corrosion, thereby shortening the service life of the pipelines. Clear quality specifications for the CO₂ stream and specialised standards and guidelines therefore play a central role in the planning, construction and operation of future CO₂ pipeline networks.
