UK to spend $24bn on domestic carbon capture projects for energy transition

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt will announce £20 billion ($24 billion) for domestic carbon capture projects over the next 20 years in next week's budget, foreign media reported on March 13, as Britain seeks to achieve net-zero targets And stimulate green jobs.

"It's time for a clean energy reboot," Hunt said in an emailed statement, which also revealed plans to boost nuclear power generation in the UK. He said the measures would "help reduce energy bills for households across the country and improve our energy security".

Investment in climate solutions such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) is becoming a competitive and contentious issue, with Britain fearing it will lose out to the US due to its massive green subsidy program. The U.S. Inflation Cut Act provided up to $370 billion in subsidies and tax credits for a range of green technologies, luring European companies to invest across the Atlantic.

Hunt said the UK's investment in CCS would go towards projects aimed at storing 20-30 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year by 2030, equivalent to the emissions from 10-15 million cars.

Hunt will also announce plans to boost nuclear power in the UK in his March 15 budget, including a competition for the country's first small nuclear modular reactor. The UK has already invested £210m in a reactor project by Rolls-Royce Holdings Ltd.