The right support at the Spending Review can unlock investment, create jobs and drive growth in the Humber - Richard Gwilliam
Two years ago, Humber business leaders, were told by the then Government that none of the decarbonisation projects that we’d spent years developing were being taken forward to negotiate for a long-term government backed contract to support the creation of a carbon capture and storage (CCUS) network in the region.
This was a hugely disappointing moment for the region’s boardrooms, casting massive uncertainty over billions of pounds of investment, thousands of jobs and long-term growth.
The Humber is critical for UK energy security, we keep the country powered and fuelled but as a consequence produce more carbon dioxide than any other industrial cluster in the UK.
With such a significant asset base and clear decarbonisation plans by major businesses to tackle our collective carbon footprint it was hard to see why the region was completely overlooked.
I texted one of my counterparts the night before the announcement fishing for information. “Does it feel like Christmas eve?” I wrote, “More like doomsday eve” came the reply.
Over the last two years the region has done a lot of introspection. We’ve asked ourselves some difficult questions on collaboration, we’ve engaged openly with other regions and industrial clusters to learn from their success, forged closer working relationships with our local authorities, our Freeport and our elected representatives. That hard work precipitated the creation of the Humber Energy Board (HEB), which I chair.
The HEB is an unrivalled collaborative vehicle which brings together the business community and the public sector to promote and amplify a simple message: If the UK wants to meet net zero targets, keep the country powered and fuelled and avoid deindustrialisation, the Humber must be decarbonised.
And I’m certain, now, that business cooperation in the Humber is second to none.
Our story has been heard from Hamburg to Houston, but there is still one audience that matters the most: the residents of Downing Street. We hope the significant opportunity we’re harbouring in the Humber will be at the front of their minds ahead of the summer’s Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) and they support us by setting a clear funding envelope for Track 2 CCUS projects.
The CSR is set against the backdrop of global economic turmoil and a profound shift in spending priorities. Battlelines are now also being drawn around net zero
What politicians should understand however is that the UK’s historical cross-party support for decarbonisation created a stable investment backdrop for businesses. For many in the Humber, even the region’s lack of success two years ago drew the conclusion that investment in major green projects was still worthwhile because ‘it’s a question of when, not if’.
And despite the shift in the net zero debate, the opportunity to decarbonise the Humber can do much more than meet the country’s binding carbon targets. Transforming the region into a green industrial powerhouse will be catalytic in attracting new industries drawn by the prospect of green energy and skilled workers coupled with abundant development land, robust infrastructure and high-quality educational establishments.
The Government’s return on investment in major projects is clear and growth stimulated by net zero is likely to support AI and cyber innovation. In the Humber it could also boost the region’s embryonic advanced manufacturing, medi-tech, agri-tech and sustainable aviation fuel industries.
Richard Gwilliam is chair of the Humber Energy Board.