The Government faces spiralling climate change costs unless it accelerates plans to fund a new breed of carbon capture projects by the mid-2020s, according to MPs. A select committee report warned that without carbon capture the cost of meeting the country’s legally-binding climate targets will double to 2pc of GDP by 2050. The UK also risks failing to meet targets agreed in the Paris Climate Accord as well as its own plans to create a net-zero carbon economy. The report said carbon capture technology, which strips emissions from factory flues before they enter the air, should be rolled out at triple the planned rate to cover at least three industrial areas by 2025. Anna Turley MP, a member of the committee, said the carbon capture industry had been “the victim of years of turbulent policy support and suffered a series of false dawns”. She urged ministers to give the green-light to carbon capture and “seize the opportunities of this modern, green industry”.
Telegraph 25th April 2019 read more »
MPs note potential of Scotland as centre of emerging carbon capture and storage industry. THE UK could squander the huge potential to use carbon capture and storage schemes to cut emissions while boosting economic growth unless the Government is less vague and ambiguous, MPs have claimed. The Westminster parliament’s Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee has accused the government of holding back the development of carbon capture usage and storage (CCUS) technology by failing to provide the clear policy direction required while focusing too much on the cost implications. In a report published today the committee says the UK is considered to have one of the most favourable environments globally for CCUS but claims the technology has suffered from 15 years of turbulent policy support. This has yet to result in any commercial-scale plants being built in the UK. “The Government needs to move away from vague and ambiguous targets and give a clear policy direction,” says the committee.
Herald 25th April 2019 read more »
FT 25th April 2019 read more »
Many of the UK’s heavy industries could close unless the Government kick-starts carbon capture technology, MPs are warning. The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee said carbon capture usage and storage (CCUS) is needed to meet climate change targets as well as supporting productivity growth in parts of the UK. Failure to deploy CCUS could double the cost of meeting climate change targets, said the committee. MPs accused the Government of a “lack of clarity” in deploying CCUS as well as the cost reductions it is demanding before offering support. This “lack of enthusiasm” is symptomatic of the turbulent history of CCUS in the UK, and the lack of policy support for the technology, despite a decade of increasingly urgent calls from official bodies and parliamentary inquiries to bring forward its deployment, said the report. A first CCUS demonstration competition was launched in 2007 and was followed in 2009 by a commitment to support up to four CCUS demonstrations over the following decade, but in 2011 the first one was cancelled because it could not be funded within the £1 billion budget agreed, said the report. A second £1 billion competition was launched in 2012 but cancelled in 2016 due to concerns about the future costs for consumers. Committee member Anna Turley, Labour MP for Redcar, said: “The UK has an opportunity to lead the world in the development of a new CCUS industry.
Energy Voice 25th April 2019 read more »
MEMBERS of Parliament speaking at an event to showcase clean energy have noted that in the wake of the climate protests held across London and the UK’s failed nuclear ambitions, the Government must provide industry with certainty on CCS and hydrogen. The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Hydrogen, chaired by Redcar MP Anna Turley hosted a showcase event in London yesterday evening for parliamentarians to come and meet with industry and learn about the promise of the hydrogen economy.
The Chemical Engineer 24th April 2019 read more »