- We partnered with Censuswide to survey a sample of 964 VC investors (525 from fund sizes: >$50,000,000 active in the low carbon space) and Developers (439 companies who have developed low carbon technologies). The data was collected between 12.02.2026-24.02.2026. Censuswide abides by and employs members of the Market Research Society and follows the MRS code of conduct and ESOMAR principles. Censuswide is also a member of the British Polling Council.
- To build a focused view of appetite for CCS, we asked Censuswide to combine responses relating to carbon capture (both pre-combustion and post-combustion) with those on carbon storage (including onsite, subsea and onshore options). We then aggregated these datasets to provide a single, comprehensive picture of respondents investing in either carbon capture or storage.
- 45 respondents were based in South Africa: 25 VC investors, 20 low carbon technology developers. Whilst caution should be applied to drawing generalisations from samples <50, this sample size has been calculated as roughly representative of the size of the VC and low carbon technology market in South Africa and so can still act as a helpful indication of trends.
| Question | Findings for South Africa |
| 1. In which countries, if any, do you expect to launch or expand low carbon activities in the next 12 months? (Select all that apply) | South Africa respondents: South Africa 56% Germany 24% Hong Kong 20% France 18% US 18% Indonesia 18% Global respondents: Overall, 8% said they planned to launch or expand in South Africa 7% investors 8% developers |
| 1b. What are the biggest reasons, if any, you plan to do this? (Select up to 3) | South Africa respondents: Increasing demand in that market 44% Availability of workforce 44% Anticipating positive change to the regulatory landscape 42% |
| Q2. What low carbon or renewable technologies have you invested in or developed in the last 12 months? (Select all that apply) | South Africa respondents: 93% said carbon capture/storage (net) 60% said storage (net) 33% On-site carbon storage projects 33% Under sea carbon storage projects 23% On shore 79% said carbon capture (net) 56% said post-combustion carbon capture i.e. solvent absorption 49% said pre-combustion carbon capture i.e. integrated gasification 37% Direct Air Capture 42% low carbon hydrogen 26% solar power 23% e-fuels 16% nuclear fission advanced 14 wind power 14% geothermal |
| Q3. Which energy system optimisation technologies, if any, have you invested in/ developed? (Select all that apply) | South Africa respondents: 67% said long duration energy storage 58% said grid optimisation 51% Short duration energy storage 47% demand optimisation 29% battery storage |
| Q4. What low carbon or renewable technologies do you intend to invest/ develop in the next 12 months? | South Africa respondents: 82% Carbon Capture/storage 50% Carbon Capture 18% said direct air capture 30% post combustion carbon capture 27% pre combustion capture 57% storage 25% onshore carbon storage 18% onsite carbon storage 34% under the sea carbon storage projects 34% low carbon hydrogen 36% Nuclear Fission 39% solar power 23% e-fuels 22% wind power 20% tidal 18% geothermal |
| Q5. In which countries, if any, have you made use of a government’s financial incentive for developing or investing in low carbon technology? | South Africa respondents: 49% South Africa 24% France 18% Hong Kong 18% US 16% Germany 13% UK 13% Indonesia Global respondents: 7% said they had made use of South Africa’s government financial incentive for developing or investing in low carbon technology 6% investors 8% developers |
| Q5b. Which types of governmental financial incentives have you made use of for developing or investing in low carbon technology? | South Africa respondents: 44% said capital cost rebates 44% said reduced tax rates 44% said loan guarantees 38% tax credits/rebates 33% contracts for difference 33% preferential interest rates 33% grants 22% PPPs |
| Q6. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement in the locations below: There is a supportive regulatory landscape for investing / developing in low carbon technologies in… | South Africa respondents: 96% agree and 0% disagreed re Africa 89% agree and 0% disagree re Asia Pacific 96% agree and 2% disagree re Australia 84% agree and 4% disagree re Canada 78% agree and 9% disagree re Eastern Europe 93% agree and 7% disagree re EU 82% agree and 0% disagree re Latin America 89% agree and 9% disagree re Scandinavia 78% agree and 2% disagree re South Asia 93% agree and 2% disagree re The Middle East 89% agree and 2% disagree re the UK 91% agree and 0% disagree re the US Global respondents: 86% agree and 3% disagree re Africa |
| Q7. What reasons, if any, have most prevented you from investing in a low carbon technology in the last 12-24 months? | South Africa respondents: 56% High cost of compliance 52% Technology is difficult to scale 40% Unstable regulatory landscape 36% lack of government backed incentives 36% lack of demand for the technology 4% no reasons have prevented me |
| Q8. What, if anything, factors most into your decision over whether to research and develop a low carbon technology? | South Africa respondents: 55% Anticipating positive change 45% Increasing demand for the technology 45% tax breaks or subsidies 35% stable regulatory landscape 35% suitably skilled/qualified workforce 30% access to existing infrastructure to enable the technology 30% ease of scalability |
| Q9. 9.b Would you prioritise investing in technologies with guaranteed carbon credit eligibility over those with broader low carbon potential? Are you developing technologies with carbon credit eligibility as a core feature? | South Africa respondents: 100% Yes (net) 20% Yes, somewhat All respondents are investors 100% Yes (net) 25% Yes, sometimes All respondents are developers |
| Q10. To what extent do you agree that… | South Africa respondents: 49% agree (net) that it’s difficult to keep up with changing regulation around carbon credits 27% somewhat agree 47% disagree (net) 49% agree (net) that international regulatory divergence creates barriers to scaling carbon credit solutions 49% disagree 53% agree (Net) that market volatility makes carbon credits an unattractive investment objective 44% disagree (net) 53% agree (net) that a lack of harmonised global (or regional) standards for carbon credits makes investment unattractive outside of the EU, the UK or the US 42% disagree (net) 51% agree (Net) that legal uncertainty is the biggest risk factor for investing in carbon credit projects 47% disagree (net) 51% agree (Net) that verification processes for carbon credits are too complex and costly 42% disagree (net) 93% agree (Net) that carbon credits will play a critical role in achieving global net-zero targets 76% strongly agree 6% disagree (net) 91% agree (Net) that government incentives are essential for scaling carbon credit markets 7% disagree (net) |
| Q10.b When asked which ONE of the above statements they agreed with most strongly… | South Africa respondents: 43% said carbon credits will play a critical role in achieving global net-zero targets 23% said government incentives are essential for scaling carbon credit markets 9% said verification processes for carbon credits are too complex and costly 9% said international regulatory divergence creates barriers to scaling carbon credit solutions 5% said market volatility makes carbon credits an unattractive investment objective 5% said a lack of harmonised global (or regional) standards for carbon credits makes investment unattractive outside of the EU, the UK or the US 5% said it is difficult to keep up with changing regulation around carbon credits |
| Q11. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: ‘The effectiveness of AI used in grid optimisation and other emission-lowering projects outweighs the emissions cost required to support it (ie power & cool AI systems)’? | South Africa respondents: 100% agree 58% strongly agree 42% somewhat agree |
