The CCUS Delivery Plan 2035 also sets out 10 critical actions the CCSA says must be prioritised by the UK government, industry and wider stakeholders in the next 12 months to enable scaling up of the sector in line with this ambition.

The report suggests that the UK’s target of capturing and storing over 50mn t/y of CO₂ by 2035 can be significantly exceeded by the sector’s current carbon capture project pipeline, which represents over 70mn t/y of CO₂ of current emissions that could be avoided by using CCUS.

It finds that all of the 2027 and 2030 technology-specific CO₂ capture targets in the UK government’s net zero strategy can be delivered and, in some cases, exceeded three-fold. The study reports that the CCUS industry is investing and ready to deliver a total of over 500mn tonnes of CO₂ captured and stored by 2035, over 7 GW of low carbon and carbon negative generation capacity and over 15 GW of low carbon hydrogen production. 

However, the CCSA warns that the majority of this capture project pipeline is ‘at risk, waiting for the next opportunity to secure a contract from government’.

The CCSA goes on to say that more development of storage and CO₂ pipeline capacity is needed and CO₂ shipping will be required in the 2030s for CO₂ sources remote from storage sites.

The report identifies some 29 recommendations, of which 10 are deemed ‘most urgent’. These include a call for the UK government to hold regular funded contract allocation rounds and provide certainty on future contract awards, as well as finalising business models across the value chain. The CCSA also says the next cluster selection process should be launched in 1H2022 and the government must legislate a timely policy framework to enable projects to develop at pace. 

Commenting on the report’s findings, Ruth Herbert, Chief Executive, CCSA, says: ‘Our recommended build-out rate would provide a route to decarbonisation for all of our industrial regions and mean that we could rely on our own industries such as clean steel, clean cement and clean hydrogen for the net zero transition. To continue investing in this pipeline, the sector is asking government to commit to regular contract allocation rounds, with an overarching target and budget similar to that provided for offshore wind in 2013. This kind of commitment would send a clear signal to the broader supply chain and the finance community, driving inward investment. Building this new world-leading net zero industry here in the UK will safeguard existing jobs and create new growth opportunities for our industrial regions, increasing our self-reliance.’

Jonathan Briggs, Chair of the CCSA Board adds: ‘CCUS in no longer considered an option but a necessity if we’re to achieve our net zero ambition by 2050, with the potential to remove up to 70mn t/y of CO₂ in the near-term from industry, electricity generation, in producing low carbon hydrogen and by enabling greenhouse gas removals to offset hard to reach sectors.’

Peter Whitton, Managing Director, Progressive Energy and Vice-Chair of the CCSA Board, concludes: ‘The government is putting in place a solid policy framework to support delivery of decarbonisation of industrial clusters such as HyNet in the north-west and the East Coast Cluster. However, further impetus is urgently required to secure the full benefits, in addition to enabling more clusters across the UK to develop similar CCUS and hydrogen infrastructure. The evidence from the lead clusters proves that existing industry will invest if policy allows.’

Click here for more on UK CCUS projects.