Objective Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) is supposed to become an essential technology for the consumption of fossil fuels under the background of achieving carbon neutrality. Delving into the spatial distribution of regional CO₂ stationary sources and the source-sink matching characteristics will contribute to more rational decision-making in CCUS deployment and promote the development of carbon storage technology.

Methods This study investigated the spatial distribution of CO₂ stationary sources in Zhejiang Province and, using the carbon emission factor method, assessed their CO₂ emissions based on their scales. Furthermore, it analyzed the geological features of both onshore and offshore basins in the province and evaluated the conditions and potential for CO₂ storage of possible target basins. The cluster division of CO₂ stationary sources in the province was conducted through cluster analysis. Using the minimal transportation cost as the objective function, the optimal source-sink matching was explored under the assumption that coastal transfer hubs were available for onshore-offshore CO₂ pipeline transportation. Results and Conclusions There existed 198 CO₂ stationary sources in Zhejiang Province in 2024, including thermal power plants, steel mills, cement plants, and synthetic ammonia plants, with total annual CO₂ emissions of approximately 297.39.73 × 10⁴ t. Among these, thermal power plants released 82.96% of CO₂ emissions. These sources included 21 CO₂ stationary sources with annual emissions exceeding 500 × 10⁴ t, accounting for 63.87% of the total annual emissions, and 157 sources with annual emissions exceeding 10 × 10⁴ t, totaling about 29512.52 × 10⁴ t per year. In Zhejiang Province, onshore basins are characterized by limited areas and poor conditions for CO₂ storage. In contrast, the offshore East China Sea Shelf Basin exhibits favorable storage conditions, a high degree of hydrocarbon exploration, and considerable potential for CO₂ storage, capable of storing the CO₂ emissions of 196 years in the province. In this offshore basin, the Yangtze, Qiantang, and Oujiang sags, located near coasts, can collectively offer a storage capacity of the CO₂ emissions of 54 years in the province. The matched CO₂ sources and sinks show a parallel distribution overall. Under varying distance thresholds for the cluster division of CO₂ sources, shifts in cluster centers or the proximity of CO₂ sources to multiple carbon sinks might cause a CO₂ source to match different carbon sinks. The results of this study will provide a theoretical basis for scientific decision-making and rational planning of CCUS in Zhejiang Province in the future, thereby contributing to the low-carbon utilization of fossil fuels and the achievement of carbon neutrality in the province.