Switzerland’s Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) has published a new factsheet outlining the country’s carbon management framework.
Providing a one-stop list of the country’s current legal conditions for carbon capture, removal and storage, this publication is a valuable resource for stakeholders in the decarbonization realm.
Recognizing the climate relevance of these technologies, back in 2022, the country’s Federal Council published a report that organized their adoption in Switzerland in two phases.
The first, pioneering, phase includes the large-scale adoption of these technologies by 2030, followed by a targeted scaling phase, in which these efforts will be advanced to broader levels by 2050.
In January 2025, the country introduced the Climate and Innovation Act (CIA), which officially included the target of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 into the country’s regulations, with an aim of maintaining a net-negative balance beyond this deadline.
To enable the development of carbon capture and removal solutions, the CIA offers funding opportunities for companies that can draw up a decarbonization roadmap, highlighting the steps that would benefit from the funding.
In that sense, businesses that are obliged to participate in the emissions trading system (ETS) can apply for carbon capture or removal funding under CIA’s CO2 Act.
Additionally, ETS participating businesses that have a reduction obligation can count CCS as an emission reduction from 2025, and since 2022, fuel importers can count CO2 storage—whether done in Switzerland or abroad—toward meeting their legal obligation to offset emissions, as long as it meets the conditions set in the CO2 Ordinance.
Relevant: Switzerland Launches Call For Carbon Capture And Removal Proposals
A special agreement with the Confederation has allowed waste incineration plants to be exempt from the ETS, requiring them to introduce a carbon capture facility into operation by 2030 instead, with a nominal annual capacity of 100,000 tonnes of CO2.
In terms of carbon management regulations, Switzerland has already classified the transport of CO2 as carriage of dangerous goods, while CO2 captured for disposal is classified as waste, and carbon pipelines and underground storage is not regulated and permitted in the country.
This FOEN factsheet also highlights gaps and areas for improvement in licensing for carbon management installations and points out the need for a regulatory framework to navigate international cooperation with partnering countries.
Read more: Norway And Switzerland Shake Hands On CCS, CDR Collaboration
