Monday 12 July 2021

Carbon capture scale-up ‘could create 10,000 green jobs by 2025’

Carbon capture scale-up ‘could create 10,000 green jobs by 2025’

More than 10,000 green industrial jobs could be created by the mid-2020s if carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is scaled-up immediately.

That is according to a new report published by the Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA), which has elaborated on the Climate Change Committee’s (CCC) claim that CCS is a necessity, not an option, for achieving net zero.

The government’s ‘Ten Point Plan’ has set a target of capturing 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2030 but the CCC has recommended this be more than doubled to 22 million tonnes.

The CCSA report has revealed that the CCC’s recommendation would not only create 10,000 green industrial jobs by the middle of this decade but also 50,000 additional jobs through export opportunities.

It calls for further funding to deploy CCS technology at the necessary scale, ranging from £1.2 billion to £2.6 billion, pointing to the lessons that can be learned from the successful deployment of offshore wind technology during the 2010s.

The CCSA’s Head of UK Office, Olivia Powis, said: "All 2030 net zero scenarios clearly show that CCS needs to significantly scale up in the 2020s.

"To do that, the upcoming ‘Comprehensive Spending Review’ should introduce a long-term funding mechanism for CCS, just like the government successfully did 10 years ago for the renewable power sector through the ‘Levy Control Framework’.

"The offshore wind boom we've seen since then has been one of the UK’s biggest green success stories. With similar levels of ambition and foresight today, the current government could ensure we become a world leader in another green industry this decade, an industry that again plays to our geographical and industrial strengths.

“By implementing the recommendations in today’s report, the UK can demonstrate to the world its commitment to delivering net zero, ahead of hosting COP26 later this year”.

Written by

Bruna Pinhoni

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