Currently the UK Labour Party is on track to win the general election which will be happening soon and one of the most significant commitments the party has made, is to provide support and funding to the carbon capture industry. The party’s first proof of commitment has been shown through providing an additional £1 billion to the Carbon Capture industry, with the intention that this investment will help to accelerate the deployment of this technology.

So far, this commitment has been welcomed by the Carbon Capture & Storage Association (CCSA) and it is hoped that this commitment will turn into a long standing relationship, as CCUS is set to become a key part in the road towards reducing emissions. The Labour Party’s commitment to supporting technology for capturing and storing technology, highlights how important it is to deploy this kind of technology at scale through the CCUS Cluster Sequencing Programme. This programme is currently where the majority of companies are investing, especially in four clusters which will be operational by 2030.

On top of this stated commitment to CCSA, the Labour Party has also mentioned within their manifesto, that they will be providing £8.3bn a year for Great British Energy to co-invest in capital-intensive projects in leading technologies, which will be used to deliver clean power.

It has been made clear that the commitments to CCUS which the Labour Party has already made,  will be put into action as soon as the election has taken place. From this promise, the CCUS industry is now awaiting further signals from Labour, that the party will be ready and prepared to provide what is necessary when it comes to ensuring that the UK achieves global leadership for CCUS technology. Accomplishing this goal would mean that 77,000 jobs within the British industry will be safeguarded and it would also create 70,000 new and highly skilled jobs throughout the country.

Chief Executive of the Carbon Capture & Storage Association, Ruth Herbert, commented, “The CCSA welcomes the Labour Party’s support for carbon capture and storage (CCS) in their General Election manifesto and the additional £1bn under their National Wealth Fund to accelerate carbon capture. Many of our members have invested heavily in the first four clusters under the UK’s CCUS Cluster Sequencing Programme that must be operational by 2030 to capture and store 20-30Mt of CO2 in line with the CCC’s advice. We therefore emphasise the need for continuity in the delivery of the Programme, where financial decisions are needed on Track-1 before the end of this summer, as well as rapid progress on selecting Track-2 and Track-1 expansion projects required as soon as possible following the election.”