Central North Sea - CO2 Storage Hub Enabling CCS Deployment in the UK and Europe

Abstract

Carbon Capture & Storage is widely recognised as a vital technology which will play a significant role in the generation of low carbon electricity. CCS has the potential to reduce the carbon emissions of fossil fuelled power stations by as much as 90% as well as offering the only realistic solution to heavy industrial emitters such as steel mills, petrochemical refineries and cement manufacturing plants. Projects which can combine capture of emissions from power generation as well industrial emitters will enable the development of CO2 transport infrastructure which can act to safeguard existing employment in carbon-intensive industries within the UK and EU. CCS development zones can also attract new energy intensive industries to locate into an area with an established network of CO2 pipelines. That means low marginal costs to connect into a guaranteed network for transportation and storage of captured CO2. Recent studies examining the levelised cost of electricity have consistently demonstrated that CCS will be competitive with renewable generation technologies such as offshore wind. CCS provides a low-carbon solution to the issue of intermittency which is inevitable with wind power, thereby helping to address the need for energy security in a future which will see a growth in the percentage of power generation from renewable sources. Fossil fuels will be part of the energy and industry system for many decades to come. CCS is the only viable option for abating those CO2 emissions. The creation of a CCS industry in the UK will provide opportunities for economic growth through the retention of many thousands of high-value jobs, creation of thousands of new jobs, increased manufacturing activity, as well as retention of the UK's world leading oil & gas supply chain for home investment and billions of pounds in export services.