Getting CDR Right in the EU ETS: What's at Stake - with Francesca Battersby and Louis Uzor

In this episode, Eve Tamme sits down with Carbon Gap’s ETS experts, Francesca Battesby and Louis Uzor ahead of the European Commission’s ETS proposal, expected on 17 July. CDR is about to gain access to the world’s biggest compliance market for carbon, and this conversation lays out what is actually at stake.

The discussion opens on the integration model: a public authority managing CDR procurement, or covered entities acting on their own. Francesca and Louis explain why a public authority could bring mandate and long term credibility, and they unpack the open question of credit vintage, including whether pre-2031 activity could be grandfathered in.

From there the conversation turns to where CDR sits relative to the ETS cap, and why Carbon Gap favours staying below the cap for now. They also tackle the price gap between DAC and BioCCS and EU allowances, pointing to the UK’s combined CfD and ETS model as a possible blueprint.

The episode closes on the numbers that will decide whether integration is meaningful: the Commission’s 75 megaton estimate for 2040, Isometric’s higher 100 megaton suggestion, and Carbon Gap’s own analysis of CDR’s share of ETS emissions. Francesca and Louis flag what to watch for on 17 July, from biochar and enhanced weathering to the EU’s 90 percent domestic reduction ambition.

Links:

• Eve Tamme: LinkedIn and Website
• Francesca Battersby: LinkedIn 
• Louis Uzor: LinkedIn 
• Carbon Gap, “Integrating CDR into the EU ETS” (June 2025) 
• Carbon Gap, “Divide to Deliver” 
• The State of Carbon Dioxide Removal, 3rd Edition (2026) 
• UK Government consultation, “Extending the UK ETS cap beyond 2030”

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