Scrapping CCS support '˜has damaged energy investor confidence'

The Energy and Climate Change Committee pointed to the abandoning of the competition for £1 billion of Government funding to support carbon capture last year as one of a series which led investors to put projects on hold.

The White Rose Project, based at the Drax power station near Selby, was one of two proposals competing for a share of the Government money when the competition was scrapped.

It had been hoped White Rose would create 3,500 jobs and help Yorkshire become a world leader in carbon capture technology.

The committee said the Government’s removal of support for onshore wind power and solar generation had also damaged investor confidence.

Committee chairman Angus MacNeil said: “Nervousness among investors will make it harder and more expensive to build the new energy infrastructure that we need. Any increase in the cost of project capital will ultimately get passed on to consumers through higher energy bills.”

The Prime Minister yesterday defended the decision to end the carbon capture competition arguing that “there is no sign yet that carbon capture and storage can be even close to competitive with nuclear power or offshore wind.”

The Prime Minister’s spokesman later said it was important to ‘look across the piste’ when it comes to the Government’s commitment to greener energy solutions.