European Commission Inaugurates Europe's Largest Industrial Carbon Capture Facility

The European Commission formally inaugurated Europe's largest commercial industrial carbon capture and storage facility on September 7, 2026, at Yara International's ammonia and fertiliser plant in Sluiskil, Zeeland province, the Netherlands. The facility will capture up to 800,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, liquefy it, and ship it to Norway's Northern Lights facility for permanent storage beneath the North Sea seabed -- an estimated 12 million tonnes over the project's 15-year life. Climate, Net-Zero and Clean Growth Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra attended the inauguration, calling it a strategic investment in 'practical climate solutions that deliver real emissions reductions while strengthening industrial competitiveness.' The project has drawn criticism from environmental groups, who argue it risks billions in public money on an unproven technology that delays deeper decarbonization of hard-to-abate industry.