The UK’s largest carbon capture project to date, removing 40,000 tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere each year, could be up and running by as soon as 2021 thanks to government backing.

9 companies have secured £26 million of government funding, in addition to industry backing, to advance the rollout of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) in the UK – a crucial step towards the UK’s net zero emissions and the end of the UK’s contribution to global warming. It is the next milestone for the government’s ambition for the UK to be a world-leader in the field as laid out in the Clean Growth Strategy and last November’s CCUS Action Plan.

Today’s awards will be announced by Energy and Clean Growth Minister Chris Skidmore on a visit to Tata Chemicals Europe’s plant in Winnington, Cheshire. The plant, which is the UK’s only manufacturer of soda ash and sodium bicarbonate, is being awarded £4.2 million toward the construction of a facility to capture and utilise 40,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year – the equivalent of 22,000 cars.

When fully operational in 2021 it will be the largest carbon capture plant in the UK, removing 100 times more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than the country’s current largest facility.

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Chris Skidmore said:

Carbon capture, usage and storage has an essential role to play in our efforts to tackle climate change, helping us to meet our ambition to end our contribution to global warming entirely by 2050.

If we are to become a net zero emissions economy and end our contribution towards global warming, then innovative schemes like Tata Chemicals’ will be essential. Their plans demonstrate the enormous potential that CCUS has, reducing our emissions and helping companies to innovate and export products all around the world.

The funding the government is awarding today puts the UK at the forefront of the rollout of this technology and demonstrates how our Clean Growth Strategy is delivering for all parts of the country.

8 more projects are being awarded between £170,000 and £7 million as part of 2 programmes – the £20 million Carbon Capture and Utilisation programme (CCUD) and the £24 million Call for CCUS Innovation programme.

Energy-intensive industries currently produce approximately 24% of global emissions. This potentially vital technology captures carbon from power stations and carbon heavy industries such as cement, chemicals, steel, and oil refining. Then, before it even enters the air, it can either be used for industrial purposes like manufacturing concrete or can be stored safely underground, reducing pollution and helping to tackle climate change.

Last November the government released its Carbon Capture Usage and Storage Deployment Pathway, setting out the next steps government and industry should take in partnership in order to achieve the government’s ambition of having the option to deploy CCUS at scale during the 2030s, subject to costs coming down sufficiently.

Today’s announcement also builds on the government’s commitment for the first net-zero carbon cluster of industry by 2040 backed by up to £170 million funding to cut emissions.

The full list of projects which have secured funding is as follows:

Carbon Capture, Usage and Demonstration (CCUD)

The CCUD programme is designed to encourage industrial sites to capture carbon dioxide of up to 70,000 tonnes per year, which could then be used commercially in industrial applications. £20 million has been made available, of which nearly £5 million is being awarded today. It is intended to demonstrate how such projects can be replicated in the UK and Europe to deploy a pipeline of CCU projects for wide-scale deployment in the 2030s.

• Drax – Fuel Cell Biogenic Carbon Capture Demonstration, £500,000 towards a £1 million project
• Origen Power – Oxy-Fuelled Flash Calciner Project, £249,000 towards a £356,000 project
• Tata Chemicals Europe – Carbon Capture and Utilisation Demonstration,£4.2 million towards a £17 million project

Call for CCUS Innovation

In July 2018 a £15 million Call for CCUS innovation was announced to offer grant funding to projects which would reduce the cost or accelerate the rollout of CCUS in the UK and internationally. Following a review in January 2019 the amount of funding being made available was increased to £24 million.

• C-Capture – Negative CO2 emissions from BECCS, £4,915,070 towards an £11.1 million project
• Pale Blue Dot Energy – Acorn storage site, £4,795,017 towards an £8.1 million project
• TiGRE Technologies Limited – Integration of CCUS technology to a 200MW OCGT TiGRE Project located in the North Sea, £163,909 towards a £243,000 project
• Translational Energy Research Centre (PACT-2) – Led by University of Sheffield / Pilot-Scale Advanced Capture Technology (PACT), £7 million toward a £21 million project
• Progressive Energy – HyNet Industrial CCS, £494,626 toward a £765,500 project
• OGCI Climate Investments – Clean Gas Project, £3.8 million toward an £18 million project

Timeline

• October 2017 – government launches its Clean Growth Strategy, committing the UK to showing international leadership in carbon capture by collaborating with our global partners and investing up to £100 million in leading edge CCUS and industrial innovation to drive down costs.
• July 2018 – £15 million Call for CCUS Innovation announced to bring down the cost and accelerate the rollout of carbon capture in the UK
• November 2018 – £315 million Industrial Energy Transformation Fund announced in the autumn budget, helping businesses with high energy use to cut their bills and transition to a low carbon future through technologies such as carbon capture and storage.
• November 2018 – launch of the CCUS Action Plan, setting out the next steps towards the government’s ambition to deploy CCUS at scale during the 2030s
• January 2019 – the amounting of funding being made available in the Call for CCUS Innovation was increased from £15 million to £24 million

• On 27 June, Secretary of State for International Trade, The Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP, will break ground on the UK’s Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai
• He will also announce Pico and McLaren as the official construction partners for the UK Pavilion
• Expo 2020 Dubai is expected to welcome 25 million visitors from across the world, and the Pavilion will showcase the best of British innovation, creativity and expertise to the world

Tomorrow (Thursday 27 June), International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox MP will break ground on the UK Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, officially marking the beginning of construction.

During the groundbreaking ceremony, Dr Liam Fox MP will announce that Pico, a global leader in total brand activation, and British construction firm McLaren are the official construction partners for the 3,417sqm, two-level UK Pavilion.

International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox MP said:

As the first major international moment after we leave the EU, Expo 2020 Dubai will mark the UK becoming a truly independent trading nation.

The Expo provides a global platform to showcase our ambition for the future, and our participation provides excellent opportunities for UK businesses that have already won major contracts.

I am delighted that our newly appointed construction partners Pico and McLaren will be working with our design team to bring the best of British creativity, innovation and expertise to the world.

Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General, Expo 2020 Dubai Bureau, said:

The UAE and the UK have long enjoyed a robust, mutually-beneficial relationship that will continue to thrive as we forge partnerships across all sectors, from trade and tourism to art, technology and education. Expo 2020 Dubai will provide a strong platform to expand those partnerships, and we congratulate the UK as it begins the construction of this dramatic, artistic, AI-inspired pavilion.

Located in the ‘Opportunity’ district the UK Pavilion, designed by award-winning British artist Es Devlin OBE, will promote the UK as a world-class destination for trade, investment, education and tourism, and highlight the UK’s expertise in artificial intelligence and the space sector. It will also represent the UK with its “Innovating for a Shared Future’ theme.

After a competitive dialogue procurement contract exercise, Pico was selected for its long history in world expos having been involved in the delivery of over 80 country pavilions. With a 50-year track record and global presence, Pico has been in the UK since the 1980s and in the Middle East since the early 1990s.

McLaren brings a wealth of experience in the construction and development industry, with established operations in the UK and United Arab Emirates. The two companies will form a strong strategic partnership to deliver the UK Pavilion at the Expo.

Director at Pico Group, Jessie Ng, said:

Pico and McLaren are proud to have been chosen to build the UK Pavilion for Expo 2020 Dubai. Working with the Department for International Trade, we will build a unique and exciting structure that will showcase the best in UK innovation and reflect the opportunities within the UK’s participating theme for Expo 2020 Dubai – ‘Innovating for a Shared Future’.

UK companies have won a significant proportion of contracts related to the design, build and delivery of Expo 2020 Dubai, such as Hampshire-based Serco Group who acquired a £140 million contract extension to maintain and operate the Dubai Metro – the main method of transportation for visitors to the Expo site. And similarly, Dartford-based Laing O’Rourke won a £130 million contract to build the Leadership and Media Pavilions and the ‘Hammerhead’ access road to the central event space for Expo 2020 Dubai.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

PHOTOGRAPHS AVAILABLE FROM 09:30 BST ON THURSDAY 27 JUNE.

The UK at Expo 2020 Dubai

The UK is participating in Expo 2020 Dubai, taking place from 20 October 2020 to 10 April 2021. Over 190 nations are taking part and the event is expected to receive 25 million visits, with 70% being international. The overarching theme for Expo 2020 Dubai is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’.

The UK’s participation in Expo 2020 Dubai will be led by the Department for International Trade (DIT), with support from other Government Departments across Whitehall. The UK’s presence will consist of a self-build country Pavilion and an accompanying business and cultural events programme. The theme of the UK Pavilion is ‘Innovating for a Shared Future’ and will be based in the ‘Opportunity’ district.

Find out more on the Dubai Expo 2020 website

The Department for International Trade

DIT helps businesses export, drives inward and outward investment, negotiates market access and trade deals, and champions free trade.

We are an international economic department, responsible for:

• Supporting and encouraging UK businesses to drive sustainable international growth.
• Ensuring the UK remains a leading destination for international investment and maintains its number one position for international investment stock in Europe.
• Opening markets, building a trade framework with new and existing partners which is free and fair.
• Using trade and investment to underpin the government’s agenda for a Global Britain and its ambitions for prosperity, stability and security worldwide.

We, as the current and future European Union members of the Council, underline that in the current context, it is more important than ever to preserve the JCPOA and resolution 2231.

The JCPOA is widely regarded as fundamental to regional and international peace and security, a major achievement in nuclear non-proliferation and of diplomacy. Fulfillment of all nuclear-related commitments under the NPT as well as the JCPOA remains fundamental to guarantee the peaceful nature of Iranian nuclear program.

As set out in the seventh report of the UN Secretary General, it is essential that these diplomatic efforts and hard-won achievements be preserved and built upon. In this regard, we regret that the United States of America – further to its withdrawal from the Plan on 8 May 2018 – has re-imposed sanctions and further decided not to extend waivers with regard to the trade in oil with the Islamic Republic of Iran, and not to fully renew waivers for nuclear non-proliferation projects in the framework of the Plan. These actions are contrary to the goals set out in the Plan and resolution 2231 (2015).

The EU has been clear that its support for the JCPOA relies on full implementation of the agreement by Iran. We welcome the work of the IAEA to confirm Iranian implementation of its commitments. However, we are extremely concerned about the Iranian announcements regarding its nuclear commitments. We strongly urge Iran to continue to implement its commitments under JCPOA in full and to refrain from escalatory steps. France, Germany and the UK, with support of the EU and other Member States, are finalising the operationalisation of INSTEX – a Special Purpose Vehicle to facilitate legitimate trade with Iran.

Separate from the nuclear issues, we are concerned about the findings of the Secretary General regarding Iran’s regional activities, in particular ballistic missile related activities and transfers, which are inconsistent with UNSCR 2231. We strongly urge Iran to refrain from such activities, which deepen mistrust and increase regional tensions.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) will lead a procurement exercise to secure an ‘express freight service’. It will transport small medical supply consignments into the UK within 24 hours if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

This is designed to support the uninterrupted supply of medicines and medical products where there is an urgent need or where a suppliers’ own logistics plans are disrupted.

Additional plans are also being put in place for a freight capacity framework agreement that will provide government departments with the ability to secure freight capacity for our critical supply chains as and when required. Medicines and medical products will be prioritised on capacity that is procured.

This latest procurement activity forms part of the wider plan for minimising any supply disruption. As well as freight capacity, this includes the building up of buffer stocks across the following sectors:

• medicines
• medical devices and clinical consumables
• blood and transplants
• vaccines and countermeasures
• supplies for clinical trials
• non-clinical goods and services

It also includes:

• additional warehouse space for stockpiled medicines, including ambient, refrigerated and controlled drug storage

• working with industry to improve trader readiness in preparation for the new customs procedures that will come into force on day 1 if we leave the EU without a deal

• changing or clarifying regulatory requirements so that companies can continue to sell their products in the UK if we have no deal

• arrangements to deal with shortages  in addition to normal shortage management routes, enabling ministers to issue serious shortage protocols to pharmacists

All these arrangements echo the plans put in place ahead of 29 March and will be essential to the continuation of medicines and medical products if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

The department continues to centrally coordinate contingency measures to mitigate risks to supply. This removes the need for any stockpiling at local level, which could cause medicine shortages and put patient care at risk.

Leaving the EU with a deal remains the government’s priority. However, it must plan for every eventuality, including no deal.

DHSC continues to work closely with the devolved administrations, industry trade bodies and suppliers, the NHS and other main stakeholders to ensure that it is as prepared for leaving the EU without a deal in October as it was on 29 March and 12 April.

More information can be found in the written ministerial statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday 26 June and a letter from the government to suppliers.

The government plans to introduce the new legislation this summer which will mandate full ingredients labelling for foods which are prepacked for direct sale. It is proposed that the new laws will come into force in England, Wales and Northern Ireland by summer 2021 – giving food businesses time to adapt to the change.

The Government Chemist has a long standing interest in food allergy, focused around acknowledged difficulties in allergen analysis. We are hosting an international meeting of Professor Clare Mills’ Manchester Food Allergy Network, MFAN, on Wednesday, 3 July 2019. Organised by Professor Mills, Michael Walker and Gill Holcombe, the meeting will discuss a framework for developing best practice guidance for allergen analysis.

We are also collaborating with Professor Katrina Campbell of the Institute of Global Food Security in Queen’s University Belfast in organising a conference on 21 October 2019 looking at the human, analytical and regulatory implications of food allergy.

The Government Chemist strives to understand industry best practice so as to interpret allergen measurement results in the right context and offer advice to businesses, regulators, enforcement authorities and consumers on request to prevent harm to consumers.

Michael Walker commented on the Government announcement today:

Allergen management in the food industry is a complex and increasingly pressing issue, with pre-packaged foods constituting a larger proportion of what we eat. Regulation which ensures clarity about ingredients and food manufacturing processes will help reduce risk to consumers.

More information about the Government announcement

For more information about food testing, allergens or the work the Government Chemist carries out contact: