UK poised for surge in CCS investment

Country has Europe’s largest CO₂ storage potential but regulatory and policy issues must be resolved to enable growth, says Offshore Energies UK

Investment in the UK’s CCS sector is expected to rise sharply through the end of this decade as developers look to exploit the country’s 78GT of CO₂ storage potential, the largest in Europe, according to industry group Offshore Energies UK (OEUK). Over the next decade, the UK CCS market is anticipated to grow to around £2b/yr ($2.53b) by 2030 and potentially £3b/yr by 2040. This would mean a cumulative £20b spend to 2035 and £34b to 2040. Unlocking CO₂ imports will offer an opportunity to increase this further, potentially by another £10b, OEUK said in its 2024 Business and Supply Chain Outlook report. £3b – Annual CCS spend in 2040 “The capex intensity and front-loaded nature o