Exxon Mobil predicts that by 2050, the market for carbon capture and sequestration will be worth US$4 trillion, according to a presentation given on Tuesday.
Carbon capture and sequestration involve capturing carbon dioxide from fuel combustion or industrial processes, transporting it by ship or pipeline, and storing it underground in geological formations or using it as a resource for product development.
As pointed out by the International Energy Agency (IEA), carbon capture is an important technology which could contribute to a 19% reduction in global carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.
As international organizations like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) refer to carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a crucial technology to mitigate the effects of global warming, large oil firms have been investing to make the technology a viable business.
Market research company IndustryARC said in a report that the market has been driven by the growing demand for carbon dioxide injection technologies for enhanced oil recovery and rigorous government standards for greenhouse gas emission.
Exxon has been under great pressure from the public to lower its total emissions since its energy transition strategy excludes renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power.
The oil giant announced in January that it wishes to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, and several stages have been planned to reach this goal, including an expected investment of more than US$15 billion by 2027 in developing low-emission initiatives.
The company is thus currently conducting design studies on carbon capture technology in Texas and in southeast Australia in a bid to reduce the carbon footprint from its operations.
According to another American oil giant Occidental Petroleum, which is creating the world's largest project to capture carbon dioxide from the air, carbon capture could become a US$3-5 trillion worldwide industry. The technology may create as much revenue and cash flow as oil and gas does today, said Occidental's Chief Executive Vicki Hollub at a conference in March.
