Kenneth Möllersten

Kenneth Möllersten has been working over 25 years in the interface between greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation technology and climate policy. His current research is focused on Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR), the net-zero transformation, Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, Voluntary Carbon Markets, and methods for GHG accounting and reporting. Kenneth has authored over 20 peer-reviewed papers in the areas of GHG mitigation, GHG accounting, carbon markets, and CDR policy. He has received international recognition for his contributions as one of the first proponents of Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) (2001) and Biochar Carbon Removal (BCR) (2004) as well as some of the first model-based global scenarios featuring BECCS and globally net-negative CO2 emissions published (2001-2010).

He has extensive experience of practical work related to the project-based flexible mechanisms under the Kyoto Protocol. During 2003-2018 Kenneth managed bilateral carbon market transactions for the Swedish government and represented Sweden in multilateral carbon funds developing piloting concepts for Art. 6 activities, taking active part in the methodological development of the flexible mechanisms under the Kyoto Protocol and the market-based collaborative instruments under the Paris Agreement. He, amongst others, had an active role in the development of new CDM methodologies (water purification and Carbon Capture and Storage).

Kenneth has served on advisory/expert panels of Biorecro, Carbon Capital Markets, the Inclusive Carbon Standard, and Ceezer GmbH, represented Sweden as an expert in IPCC and UNFCCC negotiations, the Clean Technology Fund, the IEA GHG R&D Programme and IEA Annex GHG Balances of Bioenergy Systems. He is a member of the Article 6.4 mechanism Roster of experts for the climate policy specialisation and was previously a member as “Methodologies Expert”.  Kenneth is also a member of the WG2/Env Mgmt "Greenhouse gases" of the Swedish Institute for Standards.

As a public servant and consultant, he has been leading several complex assignments related to carbon markets, including for the Swedish Energy Agency, the Swedish Ministry of Environment, the Nordic Council of Ministers, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Sida, Nefco, the Church of Sweden, and several private corporations. Kenneth is currently part of teams providing technical and policy advice to the Swedish Energy Agency’s programme for Article 6 investments and National Centre of Competence for CCS, respectively.

Kenneth completed his postdoctoral training at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Vienna. He holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering and an MSc in Mechanical Engineering from KTH.

2025, Kenneth was included in Aktuell Hållbarhet’s “Sweden’s 101 most influential in sustainability” ranking, highlighting his role in research shaping Sweden’s climate policies.

Projects

INVEST-CDR: Financing and policy coordination for CO2 removal markets

Technical carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions, such as BECCS and DACCS, are likely critical for achieving the climate targets set by the Paris Agreement. However, achieving large-scale deployment of CDR will require not only technical progress, but also a fundamental transformation of capital flows, investment structures, and financial systems to ensure long-term sustainability. This project addresses these challenges by collaborating with key stakeholders—banks, investors, energy companies, carbon dioxide transport and storage operators, and authorities—to analyse how capital flows and investments can be directed to support the expansion of CDR value chains in the Nordics. Stakeholder insights will support the development of models that link CDR value chains to energy and financial systems and guide the analysis of how market designs and intertemporal policy instruments, such as Extended Emitter Responsibility, can mobilise large-scale, long-term investments. The work combines game-theoretic methods and real options modelling with energy system modelling and co-creation policy workshops. The results will advance the scientific foundation for financing and regulatory frameworks and, through close collaboration with key stakeholders, generate proposals that can be implemented in practice to foster investments and the large-scale deployment of CDR.
Term: 2025-2030.
Role: Project leader. Project partners: IVL, Chalmers university, RISE, University of Oxford, and Nasdaq.

Nordic BECCS cooperation through Article 6

The project examines how an integrated Nordic market for bio-CCS could be established. Such market would enable greater utilization of the potential for capture of biogenic CO2 that exists primarily in Sweden and Finland. It would also make it easier for individual Nordic countries, and the whole Nordic region, to attain adopted net-zero GHG emission targets. The project will investigate how the Paris Agreement’s Article 6 can be operationalised regionally in the Nordic region. If an Article 6.2-based Nordic framework is introduced, so-called ITMOs (internationally transferred mitigation outcomes) could be issued and the outcome of bio-CCS transferred from an implementing country to another country that pays for ITMOs which could then count the outcome against its emission target. The project is supported by industry stakeholders from the Nordic business community.
Term: 2022-2027
Role: Co-project leader.  Project partners: KTH, IVL, Perspectives Climate Research.
Web: https://www.ivl.se/english/ivl/press/news/2022-01-04-new-project-examines-conditions-for-a-nordic-beccs-market.html

BECCS in Sweden beyond 2030

Based on literature reviews and interviews in Sweden and the EU, this project will provide decision support for designing a Swedish BECCS strategy through analyzing: 1) lessons learnt from the first auction; 2) potential BECCS policy in the EU and how it harmonizes with the Swedish auctions; 3) consequences of different views on
ownership of negative emissions. The results will be of great value to civil servants and politicians tasked with designing future auctions as well as to build Swedish negotiating positions within the EU.
Term: 2023-2026
Role: Work package leader. Project partners: RISE, Linköping university, IVL.
Web: https://www.ri.se/en/expertise-areas/projects/beccs-in-sweden-beyond-2030

NET-RAPIDO (Finalised)

The project considered the potential contributions of negative emission technologies (NETs) to limiting the global temperature increase to well below 2°C or 1.5°C. It addressed the tension between ambitious temperature targets and possible reliance on untested, yet potentially necessary, technologies in international climate policy. The project applied quantitative and qualitative analysis to gain insights into the readiness and options for developing coherent international governance arrangements, ensuring environmental integrity as well as sustainable development. It considered the economic feasibility of NETs and the necessary levels of support, and developed possible practical approaches to incentivise private sector investments. The research was accompanied by a continuous stakeholder and public engagement process, involving researchers, NGOs, policymakers, and industry.
Term: 2019-2022. Project partners: Mälardalen University, Perspectives Climate Research, Climate Strategies.
Web: https://climatestrategies.org/projects/net-rapido/

Media

Overshootpodcast: Episode 2 "Carbon suckers"

Sydney Morning Herald: https://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/beyond-emissions-the-call-to-pull-carbon-out-of-the-atmosphere-20210806-p58gia.html

Carbon Brief: https://www.carbonbrief.org/beccs-the-story-of-climate-changes-saviour-technology/

Sveriges Radio P1: https://www.sverigesradio.se/avsnitt/klimatkompensation-raddning-eller-illusion

Aktuell Hållbarhet: Sweden's 101 most influencial in sustainability. https://www.aktuellhallbarhet.se/ekonomi-och-strategi/hallbarhetsarbete/fler-namn-pa-listan-sveriges-101-hallbarhetsmaktigaste-2025/