DESNZ announces £9.4bn funding package for carbon capture and storage projects
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has announced £9.4bn in funding to support a range of carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects as part of the government’s 2025 Spending Review, including the Acorn project in Aberdeenshire and the Viking project in the Humber. This includes £200m in initial development funding for the Acorn project, subject to business case approval. At peak construction, the Acorn and Viking projects are anticipated to support approximately 15,000 and 20,000 jobs respectively, with both projects targeting financial closure later in this Parliament, subject to project readiness and affordability. Once operational, they are expected to collectively remove up to 18 million tonnes of CO₂ annually. The funding will also support the National Gas SCO₂T Connect project, which involves repurposing an existing 175-mile gas pipeline and constructing an additional 35 miles of new build pipeline, to transport CO₂ captured at Grangemouth to storage facilities under the North Sea.