Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the levels of offshore CO2 storage capacity required to meet projections for (a) hydrogen production and (b) industrial and power carbon capture projects for 2035 and beyond; and what steps he plans to take to help ensure that that capacity is delivered in a timely manner.

The UK has an estimated 78 billion tonnes of CO₂ storage capacity on its Continental Shelf. This is more than adequate storage capacity to meet CO₂ storage requirements for hydrogen production and industrial and power carbon capture projects.

In the Net Zero Strategy, the UK set out an ambition to capture 20-30 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of CO₂ by 2030, including 6 million tonnes per year of industrial emissions, and at least 50 Mtpa by the mid-2030s.

The Department continues to work with key regulatory and industry partners to ensure the capacity needed to store CO₂ is made available.