SUEZ recycling and recovery UK and BP have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore the feasibility of the UK’s first carbon capture and storage project from energy-from-waste.
The Net Zero Teesside Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) project plans to capture up to 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, the equivalent to the annual energy use of over 3 million UK homes.
The agreement paves the way for SUEZ to develop a solution to capture the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from one of four energy-from-waste facilities it operates in the Teesside area.
Once captured, the CO₂ will be supplied to the bp led Net Zero Teesside CCUS project, to be transported and permanently stored in a geological storage site beneath the North Sea.
Over the past two decades, the UK waste sector has achieved a huge reduction in its emission profile, SUEZ says, with greenhouse gas emissions down by 69% from 1990.
With the final move of biodegradable waste away from landfill for England planned for 2030, there is renewed focus on increased recycling and waste prevention, and on continuing to reduce the carbon footprint of managing residual waste, it says.
Net Zero Teesside
The SUEZ Group will develop a ‘solvent based modular system’ to capture CO₂ from energy-from-waste flue gas emissions. The commercial scale demonstration carbon capture plant is planned to be developed at the company’s Tees Valley facility at Haverton Hill on Teesside.
The project is intended to remove 90% of fossil and biogenic CO₂ emissions from the energy-from-waste plant, leading to it becoming carbon negative.
The successful implementation of the project will enable the large-scale roll out of the carbon capture solution across SUEZ Group’s energy-from-waste plant portfolio and to other industrial emitters located within carbon capture, utilization and storage hubs worldwide.
John Scanlon, Chief Executive Officer for SUEZ recycling and recovery UK, said: “We’re delighted to be working with bp and Net Zero Teesside on this project that would be the first of its kind in the UK.
As a sector we have made great strides to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions over the past two decades with the move away from landfill to increased reuse, recycling and energy recovery
“As a sector we have made great strides to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions over the past two decades with the move away from landfill to increased reuse, recycling and energy recovery.
“As we look ahead to the UK’s 2050 net zero target, carbon capture and storage technology is set to be a key component of our low carbon future. By harnessing this opportunity at Teesside, we aim to demonstrate that it’s possible to not only significantly reduce carbon emissions from energy-from-waste but for energy-from-waste to become a carbon negative activity.
“The local support shown from customers and partners towards this project shows a common desire to continue to reduce carbon as we all work towards the Governments Net Zero targets.”
Andy Lane, Managing Director for Net Zero Teesside, said: “This MoU demonstrates another example of the strong local commitment to decarbonise existing industry in the region.
“We look forward to working with SUEZ as it aims to achieve a world first with the scale-up of carbon capture technologies and application to an energy-from-waste facility. The SUEZ facilities located in Teesside are ideally placed for integration with the Net Zero Teesside project, enabling captured carbon to be sequestered in geological storage under the North Sea.”
