UK and Scottish governments commit £4.2m for carbon capture research

The UK and Scottish governments have jointly committed to providing £4.2 million for industrial and feasibility research for a carbon capture storage coal-gasification power plant located in Grangemouth, Scotland.

Carbon capture and storage involves capturing emissions at power plants and burying the gases. The technology could help make the fossil fuels industry cleaner and aid climate change targets. However, the method has not yet been scaled.

The latest funding is made up of £1.7 million from the Department of Energy and Climate Change and £2.5 million from the Scottish Government. It will allow Seattle-based Summit Power Group to undertake industrial research and feasibility research with the objective of designing, siting, financing and building the proposed 570 megawatt Caledonia Clean Energy Project.

The project will combine carbon capture technologies with coal gasification at a single facility. The proposed power station will be fitted with technology designed to capture 90% of CO2 emissions, which would then be transported via pipelines and stored 2 kilometres beneath the North Sea.

Energy and climate change secretary Ed Davey said, “Carbon capture and storage could be crucial in helping us meet our ambitious climate change goals.

“The UK is one of the world’s frontrunners in this sector and the UK government is leading Europe with its support of the two competition projects at Peterhead in Scotland and White Rose in Yorkshire.”

He added, “Developing carbon capture and storage more widely is vital if it is to become cost-competitive technology, and I’m excited at the prospect of Grangemouth contributing to the UK’s low carbon future.”

Over the next 18 months a detailed programme of research and development work will be undertaken by Summit Power. The findings will be shared across the industry and with academics with the aim of increasing understanding of how to develop and deploy carbon capture and storage at commercial scale.

Photo: John Nyberg via Freeimages

Further reading:

Davey unveils £20m Scottish carbon capture and storage investment

Labour promises to invest in carbon capture and storage

EU set to fund UK carbon capture and storage project

Carbon capture and storage must be fast-tracked to UK power plants, MPs urge

North Sea nations key to Europe’s low-carbon transition, says report