The government has unveiled a £166.5mn cash injection for green technologies to drive the UK closer to achieving its climate ambitions.
On 24 May, BEIS outlined how the investment package – awarded to innovators, businesses, academics and heavy industry across the UK – will accelerate the delivery of key technologies such as carbon capture, greenhouse gas removal and hydrogen, while creating more than 60,000 jobs. The funding includes £37.5mn for greenhouse gas removal methods, £20mn for the next generation of carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) technologies and £20mn for a new virtual Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre, set to be run by Heriot-Watt University.
It also includes £60mn to support the development of low carbon hydrogen in the UK and for identifying and scaling up more efficient solutions for making clean hydrogen from electrolysis. The funding will help to create around 8,000 hydrogen jobs and push the UK closer to using low carbon hydrogen in key industries, such as transport and heavy industry.
With the funding announcement, the expressions of interest process for both the CCUS innovation and Hydrogen Supply 2 (HYS2) competitions has now opened.
The £60mn HYS2 competition will be divided into two streams – both worth £30mn – with the first supporting development of solutions to a market entry stage, helping to increase competition and maximise potential future cost reductions and foster export opportunities. It will be run over two phases – feasibility, then demonstration – and split into four categories: low carbon hydrogen production; zero carbon hydrogen production; hydrogen storage and distribution; and net zero hydrogen supply solutions. The second stream will target more developed projects, ensuring UK hydrogen supply solutions remain competitive and maximise cost reduction for projects deployed in the 2020s.
Elsewhere, industry and academic-led projects can apply for CCUS innovation 2.0 funding, as the government aims to broaden the audience from the traditional power sector’s interest in CCUS innovation to gain greater interest from the next generation CCUS technologies in the industry, waste and power sectors.
