Thousands of jobs created as major carbon capture and storage network is ready for construction - boosting energy security and the government's Plan for Change.
- Plan for Change delivers 2,000 skilled jobs to build major carbon capture network driving growth and reducing emissions in industrial heartlands
- clean energy to be hardwired into national planning rules to attract investment, give certainty and boost mission to become a clean energy superpower
- comes as UK-led Global Clean Power Alliance announces its next mission to diversify clean energy supply chains by unblocking bottlenecks and boosting global manufacturing capacity
British families and businesses will be more energy secure as a major carbon capture and storage network is now ready for construction - supporting 2,000 jobs through the Plan for Change.
Launching this new industry for Britain provides a major boost for heavy industry - part of the government's commitment to backing British manufacturing.
Energy company Eni have today (24 April 2025) finalised a major deal with government which will see them award around £2 billion in supply chain contracts for their Liverpool Bay Carbon Capture and Storage Project, spanning North Wales and the North West of England.
Today's deal delivers on a commitment made by the Prime Minister and Energy Secretary in October, to develop a world leading carbon capture industry - backed by £21.7 billion - reigniting industrial heartlands across the country and kickstarting growth in manufacturing communities.
This announcement comes as the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) awards three carbon storage permits to Eni for its Liverpool Bay CCS project.
It will create a network of clean infrastructure, decarbonising industries like energy from waste, hydrogen and cement production - whilst backing highly skilled jobs in construction and enabling future generation of low carbon power.
Alongside this, the government has set out further planning reforms to provide certainty and clarity for developers on the importance of clean power projects, such as solar, onshore and offshore wind and nuclear, when making decisions on energy infrastructure of critical national priority.
Previously where policy, legislation and guidance left room for doubt, planners and decision-takers have adopted a cautious approach to consenting clean energy infrastructure, leading to lengthy paperwork and red tape blocking decisions, hindering Britain's energy security.
Changes will streamline the planning system and get Britain building by giving developers clarity on what is needed for their clean power project to succeed. By putting clean power by 2030 at the heart of planning policy, the government is backing industry, removing delays and getting clean energy projects built quicker.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
Our Plan for Change is working - we said we'd deliver jobs and growth through carbon capture technology, and now we have. Shovels ready for the ground, supporting over 2,000 new jobs and supporting thousands more, transforming the lives of hard-working people.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:
Today we keep our promise to launch a whole new clean energy industry for our country - carbon capture and storage - to deliver thousands of highly skilled jobs and revitalise our industrial communities.
We are making the UK energy secure and backing our engineers, electricians and welders so we can protect families and businesses and drive jobs through our Plan for Change.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said:
We promised to revitalise our nation's industrial heartlands, create good jobs, make Britain a clean energy superpower and grow our economy to put more money in working people's pockets.
This deal is another example of us delivering on those promises with thousands of new jobs created, our energy security strengthened, and our industries decarbonised with a game-changing technology - our Plan for Change in action.
Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said:
The strategic agreement with the UK government paves the way for the industrial-scale development of CCS, a sector in which the United Kingdom reaffirms its leadership thanks to the promotion of a regulatory framework that aims to strengthen the development of CCS and make it fully competitive in the market.
Eni has established itself as a leading operator in the UK thanks to its key role in CO2 transport and storage activities as the leader of the HyNet Consortium, which will become one of the first low-carbon clusters in the world.
Stuart Payne, Chief Executive of the North Sea Transition Authority, said:
We have taken another major step on the way to turning this country's ambitions for carbon storage into reality. It's been a collaborative mission and demonstrates the way that we must all work together in unlocking the UK's vast potential to tackle climate change and deliver energy security.
The Prime Minister confirmed the deal today in a speech at the Future of Energy Security Summit - hosted by the UK government and International Energy Agency. Ministers and business leaders from around the world gathered in London, including the President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen, as countries take action to protect themselves from future energy shocks in these unstable times.
At the summit the government also established a new mission focused on strengthening global supply chains through the UK-led Global Clean Power Alliance (GCPA). The GCPA will bring together the Global North and South - drawing on and sharing the UK's world-leading experience of pursuing Clean Power by 2030 to speed up the global clean energy transition.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy said:
This week's Summit is a critical opportunity to make progress on international energy security.
We're working with partners through our Global Clean Power Alliance (GCPA) to accelerate global clean energy, which promises to bring growth, jobs and lower bills to the UK. As the Prime Minister has set out today, the GCPA will next focus on assuring reliable, low-cost clean energy supply chains. In a more uncertain world, cooperation across the Global North and South will be essential to deliver this.
The supply chain mission will bring countries together to diversify clean energy supply chains, drive investment into renewables and address bottlenecks. Working with other countries will not only help to secure and diversify clean energy of the future, but provide new growth opportunities across our countries and relevant supply chains; from critical mineral processing to strengthening manufacturing and industrial partnerships.
The rapid drop in the price of renewables is driving strong growth in clean energy around the world. In 2024, 80% of growth in global electricity generation was provided by renewables and nuclear. The UK alone has already attracted £43.7 billion of private sector investment announcements in clean energy since July.
Notes
CCUS is a proven technology that captures carbon dioxide emissions before they reach the atmosphere - storing them safely and permanently deep beneath the seabed and preventing their contribution to the climate crisis.
Today's announcement delivers on the commitment made by the Prime Minster in October where £21.7 billion was allocated to kickstart the UK's carbon capture industry. The signing of contracts for Hynet means the UK's second carbon capture network is now shovel ready.
The Climate Change Committee describes CCUS as a "necessity, not an option" to achieving net zero by 2050.
Eni is the operator of the Transport and Storage network of Hynet, through its Liverpool Bay CCS project, which will transport captured CO2 from industrial sites and bury it deep beneath the seabed.
It means that now both government-backed carbon capture projects have reached final investment decisions, after the East Coast Cluster in Teesside reached the same milestone in December.
The consultations on the National Policy Statements for energy will run from 24 April to 29 May.
