A project which could lead to CO2 emissions from the concrete and cement industry in the Peak District pumped into former gas fields of Morecambe Bay has received vital government financial backing.
The Government’s policy bank, the National Wealth Fund, has announced a £28.6m equity investment in Peak Cluster Ltd to support the development of a planned carbon dioxide transport pipeline.
Spirit Energy is currently converting its Morecambe gas fields in the east Irish Sea to create what will be the UK’s biggest carbon dioxide (CO2) store able to hold a gigatonne of gas.
The Peak Cluster pipeline will transport CO2 emissions captured on its industrial plants across Derbyshire and Staffordshire to be stored by Morecambe Net Zero (MNZ).
Peak Cluster and Morecambe Net Zero – as the former gas reservoirs are to be known – could create and safeguard around 13,000 jobs and secure a sustainable supply of UK-produced cement and lime.
Morecambe Bay gas is expected to be exhausted by the early 2030s although an overlap between gas production and CO2 storage is possible.
Around £59.6m is being raised to fund the project. Investors include a joint venture between Summit Energy Evolution Ltd and Progressive Energy Peak Ltd, as well as each of the Peak Cluster cement and lime producers; Tarmac, Breedon, Holcim and SigmaRoc.
Cement and lime are foundation materials for many UK industries including construction, manufacturing and environmental functions.
“Around 40% of all the UK’s vital cement and lime comes from the Peak District and more than 2,000 high-quality, well-paid jobs across the region are reliant on the industry,” Dr Diana Casey, executive director, energy and climate change, cement and lime at Mineral Products Association said.
“However, cement is responsible for 7.5% of all human-made CO2 emissions globally and is not a sector which can be easily decarbonised.
“If our industry, and the jobs which rely on it, are to survive, and thrive into the future, we must implement carbon capture and storage without delay.”
Around 3 million tonnes of CO2 could pass through the pipeline annually.
The route of the pipe, which would be around the same diameter as a standard high street pipeline, is still being considered. A draft plan of the pipeline shows it routed from the Peak District to Morecambe Bay via Liverpool.
“This landmark first investment in carbon capture by the National Wealth Fund is an important and exciting step forward for the UK’s net zero ambitions, and our plans for Morecambe specifically,” Centrica Group chief executive and chair of Spirit Energy, Chris O’Shea, said.
“By transforming the Morecambe gas fields into the UK’s largest carbon store, Spirit Energy will provide the critical infrastructure needed to decarbonise hard-to-abate industries like cement and lime.”
The offer of finance will be used to develop the project through to a Final Investment Decision in 2028.
The support of the Peak Cluster project signals confidence in the project by Chancellor Rachel Reeves who has set out an ambition to decarbonise heavy industries as a priority.
