Why carbon capture and storage is not part of a just transition

By Connal Hughes, Communications Manager

For the past two decades, politicians and industry have been hyping carbon capture and storage (CCS), claiming that it should be a part of the energy transition and throwing their weight behind the high profile Acorn project in the North East of Scotland.

These CCS projects are meant to work by capturing the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels, compressing it and then storing it deep underground The proposed storage sites are depleted gas fields in the North Sea, which could see Scotland end up as a dumping ground for Europe’s carbon.

Make no mistake, CCS is being used by the fossil fuel industry to try and extend its lifespan. Companies are arguing that if CCS manages to catch some of the emissions, then they should be able to keep exploring and drilling for more oil and gas. This is, of course, a dangerous attempt at greenwashing the burning of fossil fuels, the main driver of the climate crisis

We need to rapidly transition away from fossil fuels and not drag out their demise, further endangering the most vulnerable communities to rising temperatures and extreme weather Climate science and energy experts are clear that there can be no new fossil fuels projects anywhere in the world if we are to stay within the agreed limits of 1 5C of warming

Anyone who has paid an energy bill in the last 12 months will be wondering why we would want to try and preserve an energy system that is shackled to oil and gas. Yet politicians across the UK are demanding that further public money be given to carbon capture projects, when the main beneficiaries will be the same oil companies posting all time record profits.

The reality of the CCS industry is that it has not worked at scale and it cannot deliver the rapid and deep cuts to climate pollution that we need right now For nearly 20 years the Government has poured time, money and energy into trying to make carbon capture work and it has delivered a legacy of near total failure Older readers might remember the failed promises of the CCS projects at Grangemouth and Longannet

There have also been at least two failures to get CCS working at the Peterhead power station and in 2022 SSE and Equinor applied to build a new gas-fired station at the Aberdeenshire site –complete with promises of carbon capture once again.

Whilst the CCS industry is languishing, renewable energy goes from strength to strength. Both the UK and Scottish Governments must do far more to ensure that the benefits of renewables are shared more equitably, but it is bringing jobs and economic activity today. Workers who want to transition need jobs that exist in the here and now, not far off promises from a carbon capture industry that might not ever get off the ground

In the rare occasions where these projects work – often using the captured carbon to force out more oil – they only employ a small amount of people Recent evidence came to light about an ethanol plant using CCS in Illinois, USA showing that since 2017 it has cost the American public purse $281 million to run, but has only employed 11 people and has actually increased climate pollution.

Furthermore, by committing to store carbon underground we are committing a grave intergenerational injustice. We are asking our children and grandchildren to take on the responsibility to keep this carbon stored safely for as long as people are living on earth What a dangerous legacy to pass on, just because politicians today are unwilling to stand up to fossil fuel companies.

And who will pay the bill for the eternal monitoring and upkeep of these carbon stores? Will it be the companies who have profited from selling the oil or will it be the public once again?

After years of industry promises and a complete failure to deliver, it is time to redirect that investment and energy to climate solutions that we know can deliver emissions cuts and improve peoples’ lives today like public transport and home insulation, rather than falling for eternal promises of carbon capture being just around the corner.

Scottish Ministers need to wake up and realise that carbon capture and these other so-called negative emissions technologies are a dangerous distraction from the urgent and necessary working of cutting emissions at source and delivering a just transition away from fossil fuels.