On 4 October 2024, Labour Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a staggering £22bn investment in carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects over the next 25 years. This decision, far from being a step towards genuine climate action, is a thinly veiled attempt to prolong the life of the fossil fuel industry and maintain the capitalist status quo at the expense of our planet and its most vulnerable populations.
Labour’s commitment to CCS technology is being touted as a major step towards addressing climate change. However, this so-called ‘solution’ is nothing more than a dangerous distraction from the urgent need to transition away from fossil fuels entirely.
CCS, a hollow promise
CCS is a process designed to capture, and so to prevent, up to 90% of the CO₂ emissions produced from the use of fossil fuels in electricity generation and industrial processes entering the atmosphere. The captured CO₂ is then transported and stored underground, usually in depleted oil and gas fields or deep saline aquifer formations.
CCS technology is presented as a magic bullet that allows the continued burning of fossil fuels while miraculously solving the climate crisis. This story is false. CCS projects are energy intensive and often powered by dirty energy, adding to the overall carbon footprint of fossil fuel extraction and use.
This technology also poses environmental risks often overlooked. These especially include potential CO₂ leakage, which can lead to soil and water acidification, and high water usage that strain local resources and risk groundwater contamination. Land use changes for CCS infrastructure could disrupt ecosystems and cause conflicts with communities, while offshore projects could harm marine life if leaks acidify seawater. Additionally, CO₂ injection may alter geological structures, potentially triggering seismic activity and releasing CO2 back into the atmosphere.
There are currently only around 40 CCS facilities in operation globally and together they capture around 45 MtCO₂ annually, only 0.1% of global emissions. With about 25 more under construction, and 300 in some stages of planning, total CCS capacity would be around 360 MtCO₂ a year, which is only 0.7% of today’s global emissions. CCS technologies are largely untested compared to fossil fuel alternatives. The vast majority of current captured carbon is used for enhanced oil recovery, where CO₂ is injected into ageing oil wells to push out even more oil, effectively cancelling out any supposed climate benefits and further entrenching reliance on fossil fuels.
A bonanza for oil giants
The government’s plan focuses on funding two CCS clusters: one in Teesside in the northeast and another in the northwest of England and north Wales. These projects are expected to attract an additional £8bn in private capital, primarily from oil giants revealing their real purpose. The East Coast Cluster is backed by oil companies including BP and Norway’s Equinor, while the HyNet North West project is being developed by the Italian oil company Eni. These funds are being used to prop up a dying industry and delay the inevitable transition from fossil fuels.
Labour’s embrace of CCS re-affirms the party’s commitment to maintaining Britain’s position within the global imperialist order. This strategy aligns perfectly with the interests of multinational corporations like BP, Shell and Equinor, who stand to profit immensely from continued fossil fuel extraction.
The Labour Party’s CCS plan is not a step forward, but a deliberate obstruction to the closure of oil and gas investments, and the losses of capital value this means for owners, prolonging capitalist exploitation whilst feigning environmental responsibility. Real climate justice requires breaking free from capitalist property interests and forcing a transition that prioritises renewable energy sources and energy efficiency led by and for the working class that puts people and the planet first.
