Standard Chartered: How to Scale Carbon Capture in Asia
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies play a significant role in many net zero plans, including that of the IEA.
However, these technologies are still new and need financing to develop to the scale required for global net zero.
Wood Mackenzie estimates that CCS could account for a third of the emissions reduction required to meet net zero globally by 2050.
Standard Chartered has developed a Transition Finance Insight looking at the opportunities for CCS in Asia.
“In markets like Singapore, for example, CCS technologies are being considered as part of comprehensive strategies to support decarbonisation where economies and supply chains are still intertwined with carbon intensive industries,” says Ben Daly, Managing Director and Global Head of Transition Finance at Standard Chartered.
“Across our global network, we have deep local expertise in our home markets in Asia. Given this, combined with our CCS expertise, our first Transition Finance Insight focuses on the factors at play around CCS in Asia - and specifically across ASEAN.”
The opportunity for CCS in Asia
Standard Chartered’s report says that markets across Asia, including India, China and Indonesia, have some of the highest carbon emissions globally.
Much of the emissions in these markets come from power generation alongside industries like petrochemicals, steel and cement.
For some of these industries, complete decarbonisation may not be immediately possible – power demand is growing and many new technologies are not yet economically viable.
Where decarbonisation is challenging, CCS could provide a solution that allows these industries to continue while emissions are reduced.
Singapore, for example, has limited access to renewable energy and heavily relies on natural gas for its power supply.
The S-Hub cross-border initiative, with ExxonMobil Asia Pacific and Shell Singapore involved, tools to develop a CCS project that can capture and permanently store at least 2.5 million tonnes of CO₂ each year by 2030.
This project includes work with Indonesia, Japan and Malaysia as part of the country’s plan to decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors.
Overcoming challenges for CCS in Asia
Standard Chartered’s report says there are three core challenges when scaling CCS:
- Insufficient or unclear frameworks
- A lack of cross-border regulatory alignment
- Supply chain readiness
A roll out of CCS regulation will be needed to support CCS development including CO₂ criteria and cross-border conditions.
Since 2023, Indonesia has established three ministerial and presidential CCS regulations and Malaysia’s Parliament has passed the Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage Bill 2025, but Standard Chartered says further implementation details and commercial structures are needed to scale CCS.
Markets across the region are already collaborating to establish transboundary CCS and support its expansion, such as the S-Hub initiative, but to remove friction across markets it says this must go further.
Commercial partnerships will be key to supporting the build out of the value chain among emitters, transport providers and CCS operators, Standard Chartered says.
“While still nascent, CCS stands out as a strategic opportunity for Asia to accelerate decarbonisation, seek more sustainable growth and foster regional collaboration and innovation,” says Yingying Chen, Director of Transition Finance at Standard Chartered.
“We’re committed to supporting our clients on this journey, leveraging our extensive global network and in-depth sector expertise.”
While international banks, including Standard Chartered, have shown willingness to support CCS and acknowledge its potential, careful consideration of risk is needed to ensure the successful development and execution of these expensive projects.
