The second dissemination event of the European project Herccules – Heroes in Southern Europe to decarbonise industry with CCUS – was held on October 22 at the Tecnopolo in Reggio Emilia, Italy. Organised by Clust-ER Greentech with support from EUCORE, LEAP, and the international consortium, the event gathered over 70 participants from 12 countries, including researchers, engineers, and industry representatives.
Funded under Horizon Europe, Herccules aims to demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) solutions in hard-to-abate sectors. The project promotes collaboration among companies, universities, and research centres across southern Europe to develop and test integrated CO2 capture and utilisation systems at real scale.
The event opened with an overview of Italy’s growing CCUS landscape. Speakers from ENI and SNAM presented the Ravenna CCS project, while project coordinator Maurizio Spinelli (LEAP) shared updates on Herccules and its synergies with the CLEANKER initiative for cement decarbonisation. Researchers from Politecnico di Milano and LEAP also presented CCUS infrastructure developed under the ENCASE project.
A second session focused on Italy’s national CCUS strategy, featuring contributions from ENI, Snam, Fraunhofer, Buzzi, and A2A, covering stakeholder engagement, policy development, and technology integration. Participants later toured Buzzi’s Vernasca cement plant, home to the Herccules CO2 capture pilot facility.
The following day’s stakeholder meeting reviewed project progress and visited the Ravenna CCS plant, marking a key step toward demonstrating a complete CCUS chain. Herccules now enters a crucial phase, expanding testing, validating models, and strengthening international collaboration to advance industrial decarbonisation in Europe.
