Approval Given for £1.5bn Teesside CCUS Power Plant

Net Zero Teesside Power (NZT Power) is making headlines as one of the world’s first commercial-scale gas-fired power stations with carbon capture usage and storage (CCUS). The project, a joint venture between BP and Equinor, is set to revolutionize the energy industry by generating up to 860 megawatts of power while capturing up to two million tonnes of CO₂ per year.

Located on the site of an old steelworks, preparatory works have been underway since last year. With the development consent order recently signed, main construction works are poised to begin pending the finalization of financing arrangements.

The captured CO₂ will be transported and stored in subsea storage sites in the North Sea by the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP), a collaboration between BP, Equinor, and TotalEnergies.

Development consent for the project was granted following a joint application by NZT Power and the Northern Endurance Partnership. Negotiations are currently underway to secure support through appropriate business models in order to make a final investment decision by September 2024.

The full scope of the project includes a comprehensive chain carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) project, incorporating a CO₂ gathering network, CO₂ pipeline connections, a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) electricity generating station, CO₂ gathering/booster station, and an onshore CO₂ transport pipeline to facilitate the onward transport of captured CO₂ to an offshore geological storage site in the North Sea.

Managing director of NZT Power, Ian Hunter, expressed the significance of the development consent order, stating that it marks a crucial milestone in the UK’s journey towards a full-scale integrated power and carbon capture project.

BP’s senior vice president, Louise Kingham, highlighted the potential of this groundbreaking project to deliver low-carbon flexible power to meet the electricity needs of approximately 1.3 million UK homes. She emphasized the role of projects like NZT Power in supporting the UK government’s commitment to fully decarbonize the power system by 2035 and enabling the greater deployment of renewable power by providing flexible, dispatchable low-carbon electricity.

With its innovative approach to energy generation and carbon capture, Net Zero Teesside Power is paving the way for a more sustainable future in the UK’s energy landscape.