16th December 2025

2025 was not an easy year for global climate action. Economic uncertainty, global crises, and political changes led to a loss of momentum for climate action in many countries. However, the reluctance act on climate policy has had relatively little impact on negative emissions. On the contrary: rarely has so much happened in this area as it has this year.

In a sense, 2025 marked the beginning of the strategic establishment of nature-based and technical processes for active CO2 removal, opening a new chapter in climate protection. Here are some of the highlights:

• Anchoring the German climate target in the Basic Law
• A separate funding line for negative emissions in the 2026 federal budget
• A dedicated department for negative emissions in the Federal Ministry for the Environment
• A legal framework for CO₂ transport and storage through the Carbon Dioxide Storage and Transport Act
• Amendments to the High Seas Introduction Act (HSEG) allowing marine CDR for research purposes
• At the EU level: the Net Zero Industry Act counts CO₂ removal among Europe’s strategic net-zero technologies
• The EU 2040 climate target, which identifies negative emissions as part of the solution and creates the possibility of procuring some certificates abroad (we will advocate for the procurement of high-quality CDR certificates)

CDR is no longer a niche topic

Prof. Dr. Edenhofer summed up this development at our parliamentary evening in the summer: “CDR is no longer a niche topic.” This is also evident in the public sphere: negative emissions are now being discussed much more frequently, and in a more differentiated and objective manner than a year ago. This also makes it clear that climate policy is gaining a third pillar alongside reduction and adaptation: negative emissions. It is true that the main focus must be on reducing emissions. But it is also a fact that we need negative emissions to supplement this. When it comes to CO₂ removal, the question is no longer whether, but how:

• How many negative emissions do we actually need to achieve German and international climate targets?
• Which methods are particularly well suited for this?
• Can we produce all negative emissions domestically, or should some be procured abroad?

Challenges in 2026

And that brings us to the challenges that await us in 2026:

• Funds from the budget must be used as efficiently and purposefully as possible. Together with our members, we want to engage in dialogue with the federal government to help set the right priorities.
• We must examine other budget items to determine their suitability for negative emissions and, ideally, mobilize additional public funds for the industry.
• We need a long-term strategy for negative emissions to ensure reliable investment conditions. We will advocate for its adoption as soon as possible.
• At the EU level, we want to ensure that international emission allowances under Article 6 meet the highest quality standards.
• And there is another point: we must succeed in convincing more large companies not only to purchase CDRs, but also to make a public commitment.

More members, more visibility, more influence

I am confident that we will master these tasks and challenges. Because we are a strong team. We have continued to grow this year and now have more members, more visibility, and more influence. And thanks to the collaboration agreed in the fall between the Negative Emissions Platform (NEP), the Association Française pour les Émissions Négatives (AFEN), and the DVNE, we are pooling forces across Europe – an important step toward strengthening CDR in Europe and representing large companies across the continent.

What makes me particularly proud is that none of this would have been possible without the energy, ideas, and trust of our members, our board, and my team – you are what makes this association vibrant and strong.

Germany has the prerequisites to become a leading global market for CO₂ removal – and now also has a political framework that is increasingly pointing in the right direction. In 2025, we opened a new chapter for negative emissions. Now it is up to us to ensure that future generations read a success story here!

Think negative – for a positive future!

Stefan Schlosser
Managing Director of the DVNE

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A new industry is emerging around the active removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere (CDR). Germany is in a unique position to become a pioneer in this new CDR industry. Learn more about its significance for climate protection, its economic potential and the various CDR methods at think-negative.org/en.