Carbon capture is ‘great industrial opportunity’ for UK

UK businesses could reap a green dividend if they embrace carbon capture technology, according to a report backed by the government. It says Britain should aim to become a world leader in technology which traps pollution before it can cause environmental damage.

In a foreword to the report, energy and clean growth minister Claire Perry says carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) is “one of the greatest industrial opportunities” available to Britain today.

She says there is “international recognition” that the technology must be used if the targets to limit global warming set in the Paris Agreement of 2015 are to be hit.

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Last year, research by low-carbon power experts Summit Power forecast a £160bn boost to the UK economy if CCUS technology was deployed on a large scale along the east coast.

Summit Power proposed linking industrial areas in the South East, Teesside, Humber and Scotland to offshore carbon storage under the North Sea. The firm said the operating costs would be £34bn annually, and the benefits to the national economy £164bn.

In March this year, the UK’s first CCUS demonstration plant opened in Cheshire. The Runcorn facility, owned by Econic Technologies and supported by the EU, converts C02 into polyols – which are used to make foam-like materials for bedding, footwear and cars.

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