UK Government CCS funding pledge is a welcome boost

Although the Government’s first Budget since last year’s election win was overshadowed by the ongoing Coronavirus situation, carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology did receive a timely £800m boost from the recently installed Chancellor, Rishi Sunak.

CCS will be an important tool in helping the Government reach its net zero carbon emissions target by 2050. It will help decarbonise power and industry, as well as bring in to play the possibility of recording negative emissions. So it’s certainly great news that the Government intends to invest almost £1bn to establish two CCS sites in the UK; one by the middle of the decade and another by 2030.

Once the planned CCS sites are operational, up to 6,000 high-skilled, low-carbon jobs could be created, in areas such as Merseyside, Teesside and Humberside.

It’s a particularly timely announcement with the UK government keen to boost its green credentials in the year it’s due to host COP26 in Glasgow – and its planned investment in CCS is part of showcasing this.

With various CCS schemes around the UK in differing states of development, it’s clear that projects such as the Acorn CCS project, the BECCS pilot plant at Drax power station in Yorkshire, and the Teesside Net Zero project will be welcoming of the funds.