The Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA) published last week a new report, according to which accelerating the deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) could attract approximately £40 billion (approx. $42.2 billion) in investment to the UK’s economy by 2030.
The report is an update to the Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) Delivery Plan 2035 from March 2022.
Since then, the number of planned CCS projects in the UK has surged from 55 to over 90, with an annual capacity to capture some 94 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), a 29% increase from the previous year. This capacity is equivalent to more than a quarter of the UK’s total emissions.
According to CCSA, these projects not only promise to safeguard jobs in high-emission industries like cement and steel but also create new employment opportunities in the green economy, contributing significantly to the UK’s 2050 net-zero emissions target.
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Source: CCSA
The UK government has pledged £20 billion in revenue support for CCS deployment, focusing on four industrial clusters in England and Scotland to jumpstart the industry.
This new report, however, raises concerns about the delayed government support and a lack of clarity regarding fund allocation, as a result of which some projects are considering relocating to countries with more robust support for CCS technology.
The CCSA, which is advocating for cross-party consensus to expedite carbon capture deployment, has published a manifesto containing pledges for MPs of all affiliations to accelerate the adoption of this technology nationwide.
The association outlines five key requests to the government to encourage private capital investment:
Facilitate timely cluster development, including the allocation of the £20 billion support.
Publish a clear deployment plan for CCUS and commit to regular allocation rounds.
Speed up permitting and consenting processes.
Ensure a robust supply chain and a skilled workforce.
Foster public support for CCUS technology.
Ruth Herbert, Chief Executive of the CCSA, emphasized the need for sustained efforts to secure substantial investments that could create thousands of jobs, setting the UK on a path to lead the global deployment of CCUS technology and drive the development of clean industries domestically.
The full CCUS Delivery Plan Update 2023 is available here.
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