Acorn Project carbon seize investment to be introduced in spending assessment

Funding for a carbon seize undertaking in Aberdeenshire is predicted to be introduced in the United Kingdom executive’s spending assessment, BBC Scotland News understands.

The Acorn Project based totally in St Fergus would take greenhouse fuel emissions and retailer them below the North Sea, in a procedure referred to as carbon seize and garage.

There were rising calls from industry leaders for funding within the undertaking which has been on a reserve record for investment.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves will announce the budgets for all executive departments over the following few years on Wednesday, which can come with data on what new tasks will obtain funding.

In the House of Commons on Tuesday, ministers had been requested quite a few instances about investment for the undertaking.

Energy Minister Sarah Jones instructed MPs they did not have lengthy to attend to look what the spending assessment needed to say in regards to the undertaking.

She mentioned: “We have always been clear that we support the Acorn Project” including “we know what an important proposal it is.

“The determination is an issue for a spending assessment however we’re very shut to having the ones choices”.

In March, business leaders including oil tycoon Sir Ian Wood and organisations such as the Scottish Chambers of Commerce signed a letter urging the chancellor to back the project.

The letter argued that the project had faced two decades of setbacks, and that it is needed to help Scottish industry decarbonise.

The project missed out on support in 2021, when funding instead went to two areas in the north of England, and Acorn was placed on a reserve list for future backing.

The UK government said Acorn had already received more than £40m for its development.

If it is given the go-ahead, waste CO2 will be piped from central Scotland to St Fergus using redundant pipelines which previously carried natural gas south.

Experts say the technology is vital for Scotland to meet its climate targets.

Sites that are signed up come with the refineries at Mossmoran and Grangemouth in addition to a brand new energy station at Peterhead.