- Global geological CO₂ storage reached 48.1 million metric tons in 2024, setting a new record.
- Since 2016, geological CO₂ storage has more than doubled, demonstrating its effectiveness.
- The United States and Brazil lead in global CO₂ storage, with Brazilian projects accounting for one-third of the total.
- Expanding underground CO₂ storage is crucial for achieving international climate goals.
According to a new report by researchers at Imperial College London, global geological carbon dioxide (CO₂) storage reached a record 48.1 million metric tons (43.6 million tonnes) in 2024. The 2026 annual report from the London Geological CO₂ Storage Registry covers 70 projects across 17 countries and six continents, providing one of the most comprehensive records of global geological CO₂ storage. The report also notes that since 1996, underground CO₂ storage has reached 464.8 million metric tons.
Growth of Geological CO₂ Storage
“Our latest report shows that geological CO₂ storage has become a global enterprise, with annual storage volumes more than doubling from 2016 to 2024,” said Samuel Crevo, director of the registry at Imperial College London, in an interview with Phys.org. “The consistency of these operations and the continuous addition of new countries and projects to the registry demonstrate the effectiveness of geological storage as a large-scale emission reduction technology.”
The United States and Brazil lead in global CO₂ storage. Geological carbon dioxide storage involves capturing CO₂ from industrial operations, power generation, or the atmosphere and injecting it into underground rock formations, where it can be trapped for thousands of years. According to data from the London Geological CO₂ Storage Registry, annual storage volumes increased from 23.1 million metric tons in 2016 to 48.1 million metric tons in 2024. In 2024, the United States reported the highest number of projects, with 23 projects storing a total of 22.3 million metric tons of CO₂.
However, Brazil's Petrobras pre-salt oil fields in the São Paulo Basin are the largest single project globally, reporting a storage of 15.7 million metric tons, accounting for about one-third of the total. China reported a storage of 1.9 million metric tons in 2024, primarily from the Shengli Oilfield and the newly included Daqing Aonan Oilfield. Australia's contribution was also 1.9 million metric tons. New Zealand and Italy entered the registry for the first time.
Crevo added, “Currently, the primary source of carbon dioxide comes from industrial capture, but by the middle of this century, removal from the atmosphere is expected to become the main technique for utilizing geological storage.” The study calls for expanding underground CO₂ storage. Data for 2025 shows that 29 projects from 12 countries reported a storage volume of 39.9 million metric tons. However, researchers noted that this data is not complete. Brazil's Petrobras São Paulo Basin project reported a storage volume of 21.6 million metric tons, an increase from 15.7 million metric tons in 2024.
The Importance of Expanding Storage
Researchers emphasize that expanding underground CO₂ storage is crucial for achieving international climate goals. To meet the 1.5°C (or 2.7°F temperature increase) target set in the Paris Agreement, geological storage must expand to over 1.1 billion metric tons annually before 2050.
The report also revises previously published storage figures. The cumulative storage volume by 2023 was revised down from 387.4 million to 377.0 million metric tons, a decrease of 2.7%. The annual storage volume for 2023 was also revised down from 49.8 million metric tons to 46.0 million metric tons. “These revisions reflect the latest evidence, and we clearly state in the report that there is still uncertainty in the accounting of reported storage,” said Gao Xiaowei, executive director of the London Geological CO₂ Storage Registry. “This transparency is crucial for gaining the trust of policymakers and investors in geological CO₂ storage.”
As the global demand for reducing carbon emissions increases, the importance of geological carbon dioxide storage technology becomes more pronounced. The data mentioned in the report indicates that the significant growth in storage volumes reflects corporate emphasis on this technology. Although currently primarily sourced from industrial capture, effectively removing CO₂ from the atmosphere in the future will further enhance the potential of this technology. To achieve climate goals, it is essential to accelerate the expansion of storage capacity, which will have profound implications for the trust of policymakers and investors.
Project 2024 Reported Storage Volume Total Global Geological CO₂ Storage 48.1 million metric tons (approximately HK$375,000,000) U.S. Storage Volume 22.3 million metric tons (approximately HK$174,000,000) Brazilian Storage Volume 15.7 million metric tons (approximately HK$122,000,000) Chinese Storage Volume 1.9 million metric tons (approximately HK$148,000,000) Australian Storage Volume 1.9 million metric tons (approximately HK$148,000,000) Future Challenges of Geological CO₂ Storage