Morning, Monday, 29th June 2026
Online
This conference will examine next steps for carbon capture, utilisation and storage in the UK.
The agenda will draw out latest thinking on delivery of the UK's first CCUS clusters as projects move from financial close into construction, alongside priorities for future deployment across the UK. Discussion will consider investment conditions, commercial frameworks, infrastructure development, supply chains, workforce requirements and access to transport and storage networks, as well as the evolving policy and regulatory landscape and the role of CCUS within wider decarbonisation plans.
It will bring together stakeholders and policymakers to discuss next steps as HyNet and the East Coast Cluster move from financial close into early construction, and as the Government consults on the future design of the carbon transport and storage system, alongside launch of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s Non-Pipeline Transport Pathfinder.
Sessions will assess implications of recent regulatory and commercial developments as projects move towards delivery, including updated minimum capture rate requirements, revised termination thresholds for sustained underperformance, and the CMA’s subsidy referral for the Viking project. Discussion will consider how these frameworks are operating in practice and implications for project delivery, investment decisions and future deployment.
Discussion will consider issues for cost control, allocation of risk between developers and the public sector, and how projects are judged to be delivering value. Attendees will also look at how assumptions on performance, timelines and cost are treated within existing support arrangements, including implications for public exposure where projects underperform.
Alignment of CCUS within the UK’s wider net zero framework will be examined in this context, including its role in hard-to-abate sectors and considerations for how deployment is prioritised alongside other decarbonisation approaches. Attendees will also consider implications for industrial decarbonisation and competitiveness in sectors expected to make use of carbon capture and storage infrastructure. Implications of plans to introduce the recently announced Energy Independence Bill will also be discussed, alongside associated reform to energy market design, infrastructure delivery and investment frameworks.
Commercial frameworks, funding & investment
Delegates will examine what is needed to support project delivery as clusters move into construction - assessing how commercial frameworks, revenue models and regulatory arrangements operate in practice, and how far they provide a stable basis for investment as projects progress.
Areas for discussion include how high upfront capital costs are managed, and questions around the reliance of projects on long-term public support. Attendees will consider the sustainability of funding frameworks under changing fiscal conditions and political priorities, alongside what this may mean for investor confidence in circumstances where policy or contract terms evolve.
The agenda will also assess implications of uncertainty around future revenues for risk allocation between developers, investors and the public sector, and the potential effects on financing decisions and the pace of deployment.
Project delivery, sequencing & cluster development
Lessons from Track-1 projects moving into construction will be assessed, including early experience of delivery and what this indicates for cost, timelines and risk. Attendees will consider implications for Track-2 projects, including readiness for final investment decision, and the effects of sequencing on projects not yet connected to operational transport and storage networks.
Further discussion is expected on the outlook for Acorn and Viking, including implications of the CMA’s subsidy referral and the extent to which uncertainty around policy and commercial arrangements may affect confidence in progressing towards final investment decision.
Infrastructure development, capacity & system integration
Further sessions will examine the investment, supply chain, workforce, and infrastructure requirements associated with the planned expansion of CCUS deployment, including access to transport and storage networks for projects beyond Track-1 clusters and how capacity is allocated as demand grows.
Discussion will consider how infrastructure requirements are expected to evolve as deployment scales, including implications for network availability, project sequencing and access for later-stage developments. Attendees will assess how constraints in procurement, logistics and delivery capacity may affect timelines and costs, alongside implications of large-scale capture facilities for electricity demand and wider power system planning within industrial clusters.
The agenda will also look at approaches to developing and coordinating pipeline and storage infrastructure, including choices around scaling networks over time and the implications for cost, risk and access, particularly where decisions are taken on early in capacity build-out.
Community priorities, public confidence & responsibilities going forward
The local impacts of CO2 pipeline infrastructure on communities will be discussed, looking at land use, compulsory purchase and safety considerations, alongside approaches to engagement and transparency. Further sessions will consider questions around long-term storage liability, including how responsibility transfers from operators to the state, and implications for monitoring, insurance and long-term stewardship.
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those already due to attend include officials from the Climate Change Committee; Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, NI; Department for Business and Trade; Department for Education; Department for the Economy, NI; Ministry of Defence; Office for Environmental Protection; Environment Agency; Government Office for Science; Great British Energy; Health and Safety Executive; HM Treasury; Marine Management Organisation; Maritime and Coastguard Agency; National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority; Planning Inspectorate; National Cyber Security Centre; National Wealth Fund; Office for Investment; Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office; Isle of Man Government; Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, ROI; the Welsh Government; and The Scottish Government.
