Scotland’s first carbon capture site to be operational by 2027

The firms believe it will be able to store around one million tonnes a year of CO2 by 2027 and hopes it will be able to take on greater capacity in the future.

Ineos said it plans to make its Grangemouth oil refinery business carbon-neutral by 2045 at the latest whilst remaining profitable, and staying ahead of evolving regulations and legislation. The firm added that its roadmap has set several “ambitious” targets for 2030 as part of this commitment.

The latest announcement may be an attempt to revitalise its image with regards to climate change after it fought against Scotland’s ban on fracking in 2018 and invested £1bn in prolonging the North Sea’s main oil and gas pipeline the year after.

Acorn CCS is a carbon capture and storage facility specifically designed to overcome the high capital costs involved in getting such projects off the ground. It cuts costs by repurposing existing gas pipelines to take CO2 directly to the Acorn CO2 Storage Site.

Ineos and Petroineos said they had already reduced CO2 emissions at the Grangemouth site by 37 per cent since taking ownership in 2005. The new project will increase its emission reduction in Scotland to more than 50 per cent compared with 2005.

Andrew Gardner, chairman of Ineos Grangemouth, said: “Once operational, the carbon capture and storage system will provide an essential route to permanently and safely capture and store CO2 emissions for large industrial emitters throughout Scotland with significant positive impact for climate change and the country.

“Ineos and Petroineos at Grangemouth recognise the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from our industrial processes. As a one of Scotland’s largest manufacturers and employers, we acknowledge that we are operating a CO2-intensive industry and we have a significant role to play in helping Scotland reach its Net Carbon Zero target by 2045.”

The Scottish Government’s employment minister Richard Lochhead welcomed the announcement.

He said: “Grangemouth is a leading manufacturing centre in Scotland and will play a vital role in our just transition to net zero. This announcement is an important step for unlocking that potential.

“We are supportive of the Acorn project, considered the most advanced CCS project in the UK.

“It is critical that the UK Government selects Acorn and the Scottish Cluster to be among the first CCU [carbon capture and utilisation] clusters to be awarded funding through its current cluster sequencing process.

“Today’s announcement from Ineos and Petroineos further strengthens the case for UK Government support.”