On April 17, 2026, COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) 2026/285 of February 3, 2026, was published in the Official Journal of the European Union, supplementing Regulation (EU) 2024/3012 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing certification methodologies for permanent carbon removal activities.
Delegated Act 2026/285 specifies for the first time how permanent carbon removals must be certified under the CRCF for DACCS, BioCCS, and biochar, creating a clear technical foundation that can boost new industrial projects in Spain oriented toward the durable elimination of CO2.
What the delegated act for permanent removals regulates
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/285 supplements Regulation (EU) 2024/3012 by establishing the certification methodologies for permanent carbon removal activities; that is, it defines the technical rules so that operators of DACCS, BioCCS, and biochar can demonstrate compliance with the CRCF criteria for quantification, additionality, storage, liability, and sustainability. These methodologies enable removals generated in the Union to qualify for certification as CRCF units, provided they involve technologies that remove CO2 from the atmosphere and store it securely for centuries.
Three permanent removal pathways with their own rules
According to the CRCF website, “permanent carbon removals” are technologies that eliminate atmospheric CO2 and guarantee its secure, long-term storage. The delegated act defines methodologies for three types of activities: direct air capture with geological storage (DACCS), bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BioCCS), and carbon removal via biocarbon (biochar) applied to soils or incorporated into materials (BCR), fixing eligibility criteria, activity and monitoring periods, baseline and associated emissions calculations, as well as specific sustainability requirements.
Quantification, additionality, and permanence: the technical core
The methodologies are designed to guarantee a robust and transparent quantification of the net removal benefit, applying a standardized baseline of tCO2 for all three activities (reflecting current market failure and ensuring that removals are deemed additional) and establishing detailed formulas to sum all direct and indirect life-cycle emissions (capture, transport, storage, capital, inputs, etc.). For DACCS and BioCCS, permanent geological storage is required in sites permitted under Directive 2009/31/EC, along with civil liability frameworks in case of leakage; for biochar, the stable carbon fraction expected to be retained for several centuries is identified, and, for example, the cumulative amount applicable to agricultural and forestry soils is capped.
Biomass sustainability and ecosystem protection
For BioCCS and biochar, the delegated act incorporates biomass sustainability requirements consistent with Article 29 of the Renewable Energy Directive, the cascading use principle, and the prevention of unsustainable feedstock demand. It establishes that activities must not displace existing uses of biomass or intensify pressure on soils, sets contaminant limits for biocarbon, and requires an assessment of potential negative effects on soil health, productivity, biodiversity, and ecosystems, with the option to withhold the issuance of units when a significant risk of adverse impact exists.
The future of permanent removals: new pathways under study
Beyond DACCS, BioCCS, and biochar, the Commission notes on the CRCF website that it is considering methodologies for other permanent removal pathways: enhanced rock weathering, mineralization, ocean alkalinity enhancement, and direct ocean capture with CO2 storage. Any activity incorporated into the CRCF in the future must be safe for terrestrial and marine ecosystems and provide social benefits, anticipating a broad field of technological innovation where Spain could explore solutions linked to its geology, coastlines, and R&D capabilities.
Benefits and opportunities for Spain
The delegated act itself recognizes that DACCS, BioCCS, and biochar currently suffer from market failure: they provide climate benefits but do not generate sufficient revenue under the current emissions trading scheme, thus requiring public support and the sale of CRCF units to close their funding gap. In this context, Spain—with its strong renewable resources, biomass availability, and industrial fabric in energy, materials, and chemicals—has the opportunity to attract investment toward pioneering renewable-powered direct air capture projects, bioenergy plants with biogenic capture, and biochar production plants for agricultural, urban, and construction material uses, positioning itself as a hub for new carbon removal industries.
Opportunities for the Spanish industrial sector
For the industrial sector, the CRCF methodologies provide the necessary clarity to evaluate permanent removal projects as climate assets: they detail what qualifies as a certified tonne, how it is measured, what capital and operating costs are recognized, and what sustainability requirements must be met, reducing regulatory uncertainty. This can facilitate Spanish energy, cement, chemical, and agricultural companies to integrate DACCS, BioCCS, and biochar into their decarbonization strategies for residual emissions, access climate financing, and participate in future European mechanisms (such as buyers’ clubs or contracts for difference) aimed at scaling certified permanent removals in the EU.
A framework reinforcing Spain’s position in European climate policy
Being directly applicable in all Member States, the delegated act creates homogenous conditions that allow Spanish projects to be compared with the rest of Europe in terms of climate quality, cost, and sustainability. If Spain combines this framework with its energy transition, nature restoration, and circular economy agenda, it can advance toward a leadership position in permanent removal technologies, visibly contributing to European net-zero targets and generating a new industrial base linked to advanced carbon management.
