Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 18
18
Department made slow progress and scaled back initial carbon capture ambitions
Conclusion
However, the Department has made slow progress in getting the first tranche of projects running. It had initially hoped to sign contracts with the first carbon capture projects in the second quarter of 2022, but this has been repeatedly pushed back.61 It also scaled down its ambitions for the first wave of projects. In the summer of 2022, it considered the scale of storage required for HyNet and East Coast (the ‘Track 1’ clusters) and initially settled on the larger option of 15.5 mtpa as this was aligned with its 2030 targets. However, it subsequently reversed this decision and the eight Track 1 projects it short–listed in March 2023 would only capture a total of 4.9 mtpa.62
Government Response
A response document is linked to this report, dated 6 May 2025. Response attribution to this conclusion has not been verified. Read the response document ↗