Government urged to use upcoming Budget to fund Scottish carbon capture project
MPs from the Scottish Affairs Committee made the plea in a new report.
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Your support makes all the difference.A Commons committee has challenged the UK Government to use next weekās Budget to fund the Acorn carbon capture and storage programme in the north east of Scotland.
Pete Wishart, chair of the Scottish Affairs Committee at Westminster, insisted it was ādeeply disappointingā that theĀ project there had been āput on the back burnerā.
Much of theĀ necessary infrastructure for the project ā which missed out on funding in the first phase of the UK GovernmentāsĀ carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) cluster sequencing process ā was already in place, Mr Wishart insisted.
Adding that the ālack of any certainty is majorly denting industry confidenceā, he went on to demand that āclarity must be given at next weekās Budgetā.
Mr Wishart spoke out as the committee he chairs published a new report looking at both the potential for carbon capture and for hydrogen to be used as an alternative source of energy.
In the report, the MPs said: āScotland and the rest of the UK will not be able to deliver on their net-zero commitments without carbon capture and storage (CCUS).ā
They added that both carbon capture and storage, and a move towardsĀ greater hydrogen production would be required, together with other renewables to āachieve a just transition from oil and gasā.
With the Acorn projectĀ at St Fergus in AberdeenshireĀ having lost out to rival schemesĀ on Humberside and Teeside in 2021, the committee called on the UK Government to āprovide details of how precisely they have funded the Scottish cluster so farā.
The report added: āWe hope that the UK Government provides details for funding for the Acorn project in the upcoming Budget.ā
On the issue of carbon capture and storage, MPs noted that theĀ North Sea had āan abundance of depleted oil and gas fields, providing the whole UK with secure geological storage for captured carbonā.
But Mr Wishart stated:Ā āNet zero is little more than a pipe dream without carbon capture.ā
While the UK Government has been seeking to pursue a twin-track approach, developing both hydrogen and carbon capture ā using this to store the CO2 created when hydrogen is produced from methane gas.
Mr Wishart claimed there were āgaping policy holesā in the Governmentās approach.
He added: āIf the policy gaps are addressed, and the UK Government jumps on the opportunities in Scotland, we could be a major exporter of clean energy with thriving clusters and local economies.ā
A Government spokesperson said:Ā āWe are making the UK a world leader in carbon capture, utilisation and storage and are accelerating development of this vital technology as part of our greater efforts to increase energy security and independence.
āThe UK Government is putting Ā£1 billion into CCUS through the CCS Infrastructure Fund and we recognise the strong role that Scotland can play in developing and expanding the use of CCUS ā and the UK Government has provided Aberdeen Ā£40 million development funding, and we remain committed to ensuring this continues in Scotland and across the UK.ā