Minister backs strong CCUS sector as CCSA warns UK must maintain momentum on jobs and investment

• Minister McCluskey reaffirms the UK Government’s commitment to reindustrialisation by deploying a strong CCUS sector
• Norway’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Cecilie Myrseth emphasises the importance of building on the Norway-UK Green Industrial Partnership
• First CCUS projects deliver more than £4 billion in supply chain contracts, supporting around 350 UK companies and 5,500 construction jobs
• CCSA warns that withdrawing support risks stalled projects, investment moving overseas and deindustrialisation across UK regions.

Images: Left – Minister of Trade and Industry, Cecilie Myrseth. Centre – Olivia Powis, CEO of the CCSA. Right – Martin McCluskey MP, Minister for Local Energy and Jobs

[London, 13 October 2026] – The Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA), today called on the Government to maintain its commitment to carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), warning that any cuts to funding risk undermining UK industrial growth, jobs and investment.

Addressing hundreds of delegates from industry, government and international partners, ahead of the Autumn Budget, Martin McCluskey MP, Minister for Local Energy and Jobs, said the Government wants a strong CCUS sector in this country.

Norway’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Cecilie Myrseth, set out the importance of continued UK-Norwegian collaboration to deliver shared priorities, including industrial growth. With a delegation of Norwegian companies in attendance, she said they stand ready to work with UK firms to build a European CCUS market.

Minister McCluskey described CCUS as being at the heart of the Government’s reindustrialisation agenda, with a vital role in protecting foundational industries, creating new markets for low-carbon products and supporting skilled jobs across the UK’s industrial heartlands.

But the Minister acknowledged the fiscal pressures facing the Government and said decisions about priority, sequencing and pace would need to be made.

This acknowledgement comes as the UK’s first CCUS projects are delivering; awarding more than £4 billion in supply chain contracts to around 350 UK companies and supporting 5,500 construction jobs across industrial regions.

The Northern Endurance Partnership today published their Progress and Impact Report showing that more than £2 billion has been invested in UK supply chains, with over 300 subcontracts awarded to UK firms. This has created around 3,000 construction jobs and delivered 175 industry scholarship and apprenticeship opportunities in Teesside.

Last week, Liverpool Bay CCS marked the installation of the Douglas CCS platform, the first purpose-built offshore platform dedicated to industrial carbon storage, while construction continues at Net Zero Teesside Power, Padeswood Cement Works and Encyclis’ Protos Energy Recovery Facility.

Despite this progress, the CCSA warned that the UK cannot afford to lose momentum as countries compete to attract investment in key industries. The UK Government must maintain its commitment if it is to keep investors confident, maximise the value of infrastructure under construction and bring forward the next projects and clusters.

This includes expansions of HyNet and the East Coast Cluster, alongside projects such as Viking CCS and The Acorn Project, and other clusters across the UK. The CCSA also called for progress on cross-border CO₂ transport and storage, greenhouse gas removals, low-carbon product markets and alternative CO₂ transport solutions to ensure industrial sites across the UK can benefit from the growing CCUS sector.

Speaking at CCUS 2026, Olivia Powis, Chief Executive of the CCSA, said:

“CCUS is already delivering jobs, investment and growth, with British suppliers winning contracts and major infrastructure taking shape. The UK has established itself as a global leader, but we cannot take that position for granted. Investors need long-term certainty and a clear commitment to the next phase of deployment.”

“The priority is to make the most of the infrastructure being built, connect more industrial sites and progress the next wave of projects to investment decisions. Any failure to deliver on previous spending commitments will damage UK growth and delivery of reindustrialisation, the Autumn Budget is a crucial opportunity to demonstrate that Britain remains committed to growth, energy security and industrial leadership.”