Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)

CCS is likely to be a crucial tool in enabling the UK to maintain secure energy supplies, meet its climate change targets, and provide affordable energy to consumers. It is also widely recognised that the economic benefits associated with the development of a UK-based CCS industry could bring to the UK economy, are substantial.

The Coalition Government has recognised the key role which CCS could play, both in the UK and globally, and has committed to invest in four CCS demonstration projects. In the CSR of October 2010 the Government provided £1 billion from the public finances for the first of these projects, but has not yet decided on how the next three will be funded. The Government has also recognised that, in order to realise the full potential of CCS, a demonstration project on a gas-fired power station should be eligible for any future funding.

SSE’s Involvement

In July 2010 SSE announced its plans to develop a CCS project at its gas-fired power station at Peterhead in Scotland. The plan is for a post-combustion project on one of the existing gas turbines at Peterhead, which is approximately 400MW. The proposal is in development and SSE has submited a bid for EU funding for part of the project.

As the project is being developed at an existing plant Peterhead will provide invaluable learning for the future retrofitting of gas power stations, which will be necessary if the UK is to meet its ambitions of decarbonising the power sector by 2030. SSE also believes that the Peterhead project offers the greatest value for money achievable in the UK due to its prime location close to potential storage sites in the North Sea, the access it has to existing pipeline infrastructure, and the fact that the cost of developing a gas CCS project is also likely to be cheaper than its coal equivalent.

For more information about our CCS projects please read our press releases on Peterhead and Ferrybridge. You can also visit our Ferrybridge website.