Sweden is taking another step towards negative emissions as the second reverse auction under the Government’s bioenergy with carbon dioxide capture and storage (BECCS) support scheme concludes. Three municipal waste-to-energy (WtE) plants – Renova (Gothenburg), SYSAV (Malmö), and Öresundskraft (Helsingborg) – have been granted a total of SEK 9.3 billion (c. €835.1 million) for the capture and permanent storage of biogenic carbon dioxide.
To reach its target of net-zero emissions by 2045 and achieve negative emissions thereafter, Sweden needs both major emission reductions and additional measures.
According to the Swedish Energy Agency, BECCS (or bioCCS) is a complementary measure, with the potential to both permanently store large volumes of biogenic carbon dioxide (bioCO2) annually and strengthen Swedish industrial competitiveness.
This is a step forward on Sweden’s path towards achieving its climate targets. By supporting the large-scale capture and permanent storage of biogenic carbon dioxide, we are not only building the capacity needed to address emissions. We are also creating business opportunities in a new industrial sector that strengthens Sweden’s competitiveness, said Caroline Asserup, Director General of the Swedish Energy Agency.
Reverse auction mechanism
Since 2021, the Swedish Energy Agency has been tasked by the Government with designing a support scheme for BECCS, which was approved by the European Commission in 2024.
Funding is allocated through a reverse auction mechanism, in which applicants compete to provide negative emissions at the lowest support level per tonne of carbon dioxide.
Successful applicants may use the support to cover both capital investment and operating costs in Swedish BECCS projects.
The Government has allocated SEK 30.7 billion to the support scheme through to 2046.
In January 2025, Stockholm Exergi was granted SEK 20 billion through the first call for proposals under the scheme. The company plans to store more than 11 million tonnes of carbon dioxide during the support period.
Three awardees for second call
Three companies participated in the second call for proposals that closed on August 13, 2026.
According to the Agency, all three projects met all the requirements set out in the call and have been assessed as having viable plans for the capture, transportation and geological storage of bioCO2.
Renova plans to capture and store a total of 890,000 tonnes of bioCO2 during the support period, Öresundskraft plans to store 1.26 million tonnes, while SYSAV plans to store 3.6 million tonnes.
The total funding granted amounts to SEK 9.3 billion and will be disbursed throughout the support period as geological storage activities commence. Renova, Öresundskraft and SYSAV are required to commence the geological storage of bioCO2 no later than four years after the funding decision.
The reverse auction enables public funding to be directed towards those projects that deliver the greatest possible climate benefit. Interest in the second auction demonstrates that there are companies willing to develop bioCCS in Sweden, despite the market still being at an early stage of development, said Carl Mikael Strauss, Head of Unit at the Swedish Energy Agency.
Following the second call for proposals, approximately SEK 29.3 billion of the total SEK 30.7 billion funding envelope has now been allocated. The Swedish Energy Agency will monitor implementation and draw lessons from the two completed funding rounds.
