UK government publishes submission guidelines for BECCS projects
The UK government has published its guidance to support organisations in completing the power bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) project submission form.
The submission is for power BECCS projects’ application and assessment to enable project selection and alignment to Track-1 of the Cluster Sequencing programme. The Cluster Sequencing Process launched in May 2021, and aims to deliver a minimum of two clusters by the mid-2020s and four by 2030.
Hynet and the East Coast Cluster have been confirmed as Track-1 clusters for the mid-2020s and will be taken forward into Track-1 negotiations. The Acorn Cluster was announced as a reserve cluster.
The Cluster Sequencing Process has been executed across two phases:
In Phase-1, the government received submissions from CO₂ transport and storage companies (T&SCos), and prospective projects for these clusters. The government then provisionally sequenced those clusters which are most suited to deployment in the mid-2020s onto Track-1 in accordance with government’s stated objectives. Power BECCS projects were included in Phase-1 cluster applications.
In Phase-2, government received submissions from individual Projects (industry, power, hydrogen sectors) to connect to the Track-1 T&S Networks.
Power BECCS and other Engineered Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) projects were not invited to submit a full Phase-2 application, due to the relative immaturity of a power BECCS business model, and wider GGR business model development. A separate GGR EOI was launched alongside this with guidance published as part of the Phase-2 guidance. The intent of this was to understand the scale and evidenced market readiness of potential GGR projects within Great Britain that could feasibly connect to Track-1 T&S Networks.
The government is now launching a power BECCS specific project submission process with the intent of bringing forward projects that meet eligibility and pass deliverability assessment onto Track-1. Projects that are successful in assessment will be added to the shortlist for Track-1, to progress to further assessment in a due diligence phase and negotiation before a final decision is taken on which projects receive government support and join one of the selected Track-1 CCUS clusters.
The following objectives have been set for the power-BECCS programme:
• Provide negative emissions to offset hard-to-decarbonise sectors.
• Enable a first of a kind (FOAK) power BECCS project to deploy on a timeline that will enable it to provide genuine negative emissions for Carbon Budget 5, 6 and Net Zero and 2030 Nationally Determined Contributions.
• Enable power BECCS participation in Track-1 of the Cluster Sequencing process
• Ensure that power BECCS plants are subject to sustainability criteria in order to guarantee negative emissions.
• Bring forward power BECCS projects that can deliver the co-benefits of electricity generation and negative emissions.
• Provide sufficient certainty to investors to unlock private sector investment and expertise.
The submission is for power BECCS projects’ application and assessment to enable project selection and alignment to Track-1 of the Cluster Sequencing programme. The Cluster Sequencing Process launched in May 2021, and aims to deliver a minimum of two clusters by the mid-2020s and four by 2030.
Hynet and the East Coast Cluster have been confirmed as Track-1 clusters for the mid-2020s and will be taken forward into Track-1 negotiations. The Acorn Cluster was announced as a reserve cluster.
The Cluster Sequencing Process has been executed across two phases:
In Phase-1, the government received submissions from CO₂ transport and storage companies (T&SCos), and prospective projects for these clusters. The government then provisionally sequenced those clusters which are most suited to deployment in the mid-2020s onto Track-1 in accordance with government’s stated objectives. Power BECCS projects were included in Phase-1 cluster applications.
In Phase-2, government received submissions from individual Projects (industry, power, hydrogen sectors) to connect to the Track-1 T&S Networks.
Power BECCS and other Engineered Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) projects were not invited to submit a full Phase-2 application, due to the relative immaturity of a power BECCS business model, and wider GGR business model development. A separate GGR EOI was launched alongside this with guidance published as part of the Phase-2 guidance. The intent of this was to understand the scale and evidenced market readiness of potential GGR projects within Great Britain that could feasibly connect to Track-1 T&S Networks.
The government is now launching a power BECCS specific project submission process with the intent of bringing forward projects that meet eligibility and pass deliverability assessment onto Track-1. Projects that are successful in assessment will be added to the shortlist for Track-1, to progress to further assessment in a due diligence phase and negotiation before a final decision is taken on which projects receive government support and join one of the selected Track-1 CCUS clusters.
The following objectives have been set for the power-BECCS programme:
• Provide negative emissions to offset hard-to-decarbonise sectors.
• Enable a first of a kind (FOAK) power BECCS project to deploy on a timeline that will enable it to provide genuine negative emissions for Carbon Budget 5, 6 and Net Zero and 2030 Nationally Determined Contributions.
• Enable power BECCS participation in Track-1 of the Cluster Sequencing process
• Ensure that power BECCS plants are subject to sustainability criteria in order to guarantee negative emissions.
• Bring forward power BECCS projects that can deliver the co-benefits of electricity generation and negative emissions.
• Provide sufficient certainty to investors to unlock private sector investment and expertise.
