Latest news with #AcornCarbonCapture
The National
2 days ago
- Business
- The National
Acorn project funding 'to be announced in spending review'
The Acorn Project based in St Fergus near Peterhead works with industrial, power, hydrogen, bioenergy and waste-to-energy businesses who wish to capture CO2 emissions and send them into permanent geological storage under the North Sea. There have been growing calls for the project to receive funding. Just last month, First Minister John Swinney pledged during his second Programme for Government that the Scottish Government would increase the amount of Scottish funding available if the UK Government backs it. READ MORE: The SNP has long been opposed to nuclear energy. But will that last? And in the Commons on Tuesday, UK energy minister Sarah Jones told MPs they did not have long to wait with Chancellor Rachel Reeves set to unveil the spending review tomorrow. "We have always been clear that we support the Acorn project. We know what an important proposal it is. The decision is a matter for a spending review but we are very close to having those decisions,' Jones said. Details on what exactly will be announced by the UK Government tomorrow are scarce but Scotland's Energy Minister has said that she hopes movement on the project can now happen 'at long last'. 'Scottish Government and industry have long pressured this (and previous) UK governments for the funding to realise the Acorn Carbon Capture project,' she said. 'I look forward to getting details and hope at long last we can get movement on this critical project.' The local SNP MP for Aberdeenshire North and Moray East Seamus Logan, meanwhile, said: 'I cautiously welcome this long-overdue commitment that funding and full details will finally be announced for Scottish carbon capture at the spending review tomorrow, after years of campaigning by the SNP and the Scottish energy sector.' He added: 'England has been allocated £22 billion for carbon capture, so I would expect investment in Scotland to be at a commensurate level. 'After decades of broken promises, funding snubs and delays from Westminster - including over the past year - it is essential that adequate funding, full details and a concrete commitment to the project is now delivered by the UK government at pace - and the devil will be in the detail of the announcement, which we will study carefully.' Not everyone is happy about the potential announcement, however. Climate campaigners have said that Chancellor Rachel Reeves should not offer any further handouts to the Acorn Project's carbon capture 'greenwashing' scheme in the spending review. Friends of the Earth Scotland's climate campaigner Alex Lee said: 'Rachel Reeves should not be spending supposedly scarce public money propping up a fossil fuel industry that is ripping us off. Carbon capture is little more than a greenwashing scam whose main success appears to be its lobbying operation. They added: 'The main beneficiaries of any more subsidy for Acorn will be wealthy oil giants like Shell and Harbour Energy who have shown they do not care about the climate crisis or their workforce in their ruthless pursuit of profit. 'The Acorn project is a fossil fuel polluters pipe dream and will never live up to the hype. Carbon capture technology has already had 50 years of failure so why is it getting such huge funding whilst working climate solutions that can improve people's lives are crying out for investment and political support.'
Daily Record
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Record
East Kilbride MP calls for Scotland 'to lead the way' in nuclear energy revival
Joani Reid warned that the jobs and investment new nuclear would bring would require the SNP to leave government in Holyrood. East Kilbride and Strathaven MP Joani Reid has called for Scotland 'to lead the way' in a nuclear energy revival. However, the MP warned that the jobs and investment new nuclear would bring would require the SNP to leave government in Holyrood. Sir Keir Starmer promised there would be no more 'dithering' about backing nuclear power as the UK Government committed to the Sizewell C plant and the development of new small modular reactors (SMRs). The Prime Minister said the 'change of mindset' would help free the UK from reliance on international fossil fuel markets and prevent price spikes such as those in the wake of Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. Chancellor Rachel Reeves signed off on £14.2 billion of investment to build the new Sizewell C nuclear plant in Suffolk, while Rolls-Royce has been named as the preferred bidder to build SMRs in a programme backed by £2.5 billion of taxpayers' cash. Speaking to Lanarkshire Live, Joani said: 'Scotland could play a part in this nuclear renaissance – even be in the lead – if only the SNP were out of government. 'Everyday Scots rely on the certainty that nuclear brings by using electricity generated at Torness in East Lothian. That plant's record on safety and security speaks for itself: part of Scotland's great nuclear engineering heritage. 'The SNP have no sensible answer to the question of how to ensure security of supply when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine. In England and Wales the Labour government understands that the success of renewables needs to be underpinned by low-carbon nuclear. 'In Scotland the SNP seems to be hoping for some sort of miracle that will make their preferred technologies like tidal power something other than around twice as expensive as nuclear. 'Let's get the jobs and skills in Scotland with a nuclear renaissance and say cheerio to the SNP's blockade of progress.' However, the SNP have hit out at the UK Governmment for refusing to commit a penny to the Scottish Carbon Capture Acorn project and instead to spend cash on nuclear energy. The party's energy spokesperson, Dave Doogan MP, said: 'Yet more billions has been committed to English nuclear projects, yet we have no investment in the Acorn Carbon Capture project, Grangemouth has been shut down and Westminster's fiscal regime has ruined North-East energy jobs - Scotland isn't just an afterthought, it's barely a thought at all. 'The evidence is clear that nuclear is extortionate, takes decades to build and the toxic waste is a risk to local communities - Scotland's future is in renewables, carbon capture and links to Europe, not more money for white elephants.' *Don't miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here.
The National
2 days ago
- Business
- The National
SNP pan 'white elephants' as Labour commit £14bn to Sizewell C nuclear
It comes as Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed a £14.2 billion UK Government investment in the Sizewell C nuclear power station in Sussex. The nuclear plant is expected to take between nine and 12 years to build and cost around £20bn, according to initial estimates from 2020. Reports in January said that industry insiders thought the true figure had risen to £40bn, but the UK Government insisted it did not recognise that number. READ MORE: SNP MSP urges membership to back John Swinney as leader despite by-election loss The investment in Sizewell C came alongside Reeves naming Rolls-Royce as the preferred bidder to build small modular reactors (SMRs) in a programme backed by a further £2.5bn of taxpayers' cash. The Chancellor will use Wednesday's spending review to allocate tens of billions of funding for major infrastructure projects over the rest of the decade. Labour are leaning towards nuclear plants as they try to decarbonise the UK energy grid by 2030. The last time Britain completed one was in 1987, which was the Sizewell B plant. The SNP oppose nuclear power in Scotland, and the party's energy spokesperson at Westminster Dave Doogan accused the UK Government of pouring money into 'white elephants'. Chancellor Rachel Reeves and SNP MP Dave Doogan (Image: UK Parliament) The party said Labour were 'treating Scotland as an afterthought because of its prioritisation of English industries with a litany of investments made south of the Border over Scotland'. The SNP added: 'In total, since coming to office last year, the Labour Party has now committed £36bn to nuclear and carbon capture projects in England, whilst the Acorn Project has been forced to live with Labour's warm words, but not a penny of commitment.' Doogan said: "Yet more billions has been committed to English nuclear projects, yet we have no investment in the Acorn Carbon Capture project, Grangemouth has been shut down and Westminster's fiscal regime has ruined North-East energy jobs – Scotland isn't just an afterthought, it's barely a thought at all. READ MORE: Labour 'left us to see winter fuel U-turn on social media', SNP minister says "The evidence is clear that nuclear is extortionate, takes decades to build and the toxic waste is a risk to local communities – Scotland's future is in renewables, carbon capture and links to Europe, not more money for white elephants. "It is absurd that energy rich Scotland is home to fuel poor Scots and that while energy bills go up, Scottish energy jobs are going down – that's directly as a consequence of Westminster policy and the further squandering of cash on expensive nuclear won't change that. 'Only the SNP firmly believe money from Scotland's natural resources should benefit Scotland's people – something that's an alien concept to Scottish Labour MPs who cheer on investment in England at the expense of Scottish industry." The UK Government has been approached for comment.
Press and Journal
09-05-2025
- Business
- Press and Journal
Harbour Energy manager hits out after Aberdeen firm slashes jobs
A Harbour Energy manager has said workers feel abandoned by the government in the wake of the Aberdeen firm announcing 250 jobs losses. On Wednesday, Harbour announced the cuts, blaming the windfall tax on profits for the decision. This brings the firm's total redundancies to 600 in two years. Kerry Smyth, a technical support manager, said it had been a 'really hard week' for workers. She said the UK Government must start listening and take responsibility for the damage it is causing to industry. 'People are sad, they're worried, but no one is surprised,' Ms Smyth said. '600 at one company, that's 600 livelihoods, mortgages and families – what we want to see from the government is that they actually care about that.' Ms Smyth said the Harbour job losses are a direct result of the UK Government's Energy Profits Levy, which imposes a 78% tax on profits from oil and gas production in UK waters. 'At Harbour Energy I see projects that just don't meet metrics anymore and assets that have to come forward in terms of cessation of production dates because they are not economic anymore,' the manager said. 'It's real. The government needs to act now before we lose the skill set we need to deliver the energy transition. 'The engineers that work in my team are highly skilled, competent individuals, perfect for taking us through an energy transition, but the jobs aren't there right now and we're losing them in the oil and gas industry.' At an emergency press conference organised by Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, Aberdeen Cyrenians chief executive Donna Hutchison warned that recent job losses in the city would fuel a further increase in child poverty, alcohol and substance-related harm and domestic violence. 'I'm all for a just transition, fair and inclusive, but I'm pretty sure it's not palatable to anybody in society to accept those risks,' she said. 'This is not just numbers on a spreadsheet, we really need to remember the humanity in this and that it really is having an impact every day on the citizens of Aberdeen.' The chamber is calling for the removal of the Energy Profits Levy before the next financial year, funding support for the Acorn Carbon Capture project, and an emergency summit between the Prime Minister and First Minister to stop further losses and accelerate clean energy jobs. Chief executive Russell Borthwick warned the UK is deindustrialising its energy capital and accused the government of failing to deliver on promises to protect jobs during the transition to net zero. 'This is not a region that needs bailouts,' he said, 'just a tweak in some sensible regulatory and tax policy now will safeguard jobs, create jobs, allow acceleration of the energy transition.' Climate tech investor Steve Gray, from Ventex Studio, said government policy was failing the UK on every metric, from economics, jobs and carbon to the pace of the energy transition. He called for a 'serious reset'. 'The biggest challenge is charging 78% tax on profits of domestic oil and gas production while you drive up imports which are untaxed and which don't pass any of our regulatory or licensing regime,' he said. New polling published by the Chamber showed 68% of UK voters back using domestic oil and gas to meet demand, with only 27% believing the windfall tax has reduced energy bills. A majority view the tax as ineffective and unfair.
Press and Journal
30-04-2025
- Business
- Press and Journal
Aberdeen jobs warning as anger grows at Grangemouth refinery closure
The closure of Grangemouth signals a warning for industrial jobs across the oil and gas heartlands of Aberdeen, according to worried union leaders. Roz Foyer, general secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress, outlined concerns about the knock-impact of refinery closure and the need for an urgent industrial strategy to save jobs. 'For us, Grangemouth was the test of a 'just transition',' she told the P&J's politics podcast, The Stooshie, published on Wednesday. The long-promised 'just transition' refers to government promises to ease the move from oil and gas-reliant jobs to greener energy. Ms Foyer said politicians need to step up efforts or risk livelihoods after a 'valiant' campaign by the Unite union, which offered cheaper solutions for Scotland's last refinery. 'What we've seen is our governments' utter failure, at UK and Scottish level, to keep that site open,' she added. 'If that's their idea of a just transition, our movement has grave concerns about the whole of oil and gas, and that's an awful position to be in.' Ms Foyer found positives in the Labour government's GB Energy utility investment project, but her confidence is 'at a low ebb'. Petroineos said in September that refining activities at Grangemouth would end in 2025. In recent months, hundreds of workers have taken voluntary redundancy while a number of compulsory redundancies have been made. A significant report commissioned by the Scottish and UK governments, known as Project Willow, aimed to chart a future for the site in low-carbon energy. But the report said this would require around £3.5 billion of private investment. Petroineos has said the refinery is loss-making and has rejected claims from unions that the site could easily transition into a hub for producing sustainable aviation fuel. On Tuesday, First Minister John Swinney said the closure was a sad day for Scotland. 'The Scottish Government will work to secure a future for the Grangemouth community and agreement to the Acorn Carbon Capture project is essential,' he added. Brian Leishman, the Labour MP for Alloa and Grangemouth, said Scotland is the 'victim of industrial vandalism'. Mr Leishman told the Commons: 'I don't want anyone in this chamber to dare mention a 'just transition', because we all know that the Conservatives when in power and the SNP currently in Holyrood did nothing to avert this catastrophic decision happening.' Listen to the full 20-minute interview on The Stooshie.
