On June 27, the joint online Baltic seminar “CCS roadmaps for the Baltic states as a part of the CCS4CEE project” was held. It aimed to present the national CCS roadmaps for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, among other topics, to the interested stakeholders. The seminar allowed them to come together and consider the current situation and issues regarding this topic in the Baltic and CEE countries.
The seminar began with the introduction words from Ervinas Škikūnas, the Associate Partner at Civitta Lithuania. It was followed by a presentation from Civitta representatives on the existing situation and recent developments in the field of CCS in the Baltic states and by an introduction of national roadmaps.
Michal Hrubý, Research Fellow at EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy and coordinator of this work package within the CCS4CEE project, introduced the broader context of this project stage and identified obstacles and best examples from other CEE partner countries.
In the concluding presentation, Michal Wendolowski, Climate Technology and Policy Manager at Bellona Europa listed out some of the existing and planned CCS projects in Europe with the common denominator – the existence of cross-border CO2 transportation aspects. Afterwards, the London Protocol and its amendments were introduced, emphasising the importance of this document for CO2 transboundary transport. This topic was more relevant to Latvia and Lithuania, as none of these countries is a signatory party of the protocol with its amendments regulating CO2transboundary transport (which would be an essential step if such transportation is considered in the future).
The event was attended by participants from all the Baltic states, with the highest interest from the stakeholders representing various private industries (such as energy production, cement manufacturing, oil refining, and operating terminals), public institutions and academia.
One of the key messages from this seminar was the necessity to develop further cross-border cooperation between governments and stakeholders, keeping in mind the current situation and potential development directions in the future.
