Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the timelines in her Department's policy paper entitled, Carbon capture, usage and storage: a vision to establish a competitive market, published on 20 December 2024, on the deliverability of its target of capturing 20 to 30 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year across the economy by 2030.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has set out an ambition to establish four CCUS clusters that will capture 20-30 Mtpa of carbon dioxide per year by 2030. In 2023, the Chancellor announced the availability of up to £20 billion for investment in the early development of CCUS. This unprecedented investment will help meet the government’s climate commitments.
The CCUS Vision stated that by the mid 2030s, the amount of CO₂ annually stored may need to increase to at least 50 megatonnes per annum (Mtpa). To achieve this, it is likely that the CCUS sector will need to increase the annual amount of CO₂ stored by at least 6 Mtpa each year from 2031.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether it is still her Department's aim for the UK to be capturing 20–30 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year across the economy by 2030 of which 5 million tonnes would be delivered from Engineered GGRs.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In October 2021, the government announced in the Net Zero Strategy its ambition to capture and store 20-30 MtCO2 per year by 2030, with 10Mt of this capacity to be delivered by Track-2 clusters.
The Net Zero Strategy outlines an ambition to deploy 5MtCO2/year of engineered removals by 2030. The UK Government remains committed to meeting these ambitions.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what her Department's timelines are for carbon capture, usage and storage (a) track-1 expansion and (b) track-2 cluster sequencing; whether those processes will run concurrently; and whether the track-2 timeline is contingent on the progress of track-1 processes.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Government has progressed the CCUS cluster sequencing process, selecting the first 4 clusters to meet the 2030 ambition.
Projects submitted applications for HyNet expansion in March. These will be assessed, with shortlisted projects announced from Autumn 2024.
Following agreement of Heads of Terms with the Transport and Storage company in December 2023, Government is considering the best timing for launching an East Coast Cluster expansion process, beginning with assessment of store readiness.
The Track-2 December update set out Government’s proposed ‘anchor’ and ‘buildout’ approach. Government has continued engagement with Acorn and Viking, and will provide further guidance in due course.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions she has had with Ofgem on the number of people who have yet to be assessed as eligible for compensation from energy companies for the forced installation of prepayment meters.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Suppliers have so far carried out 150,000 assessments to make sure those impacted get the compensation they deserve. Of these cases, around 2,500 customers were identified as needing compensation - and around 60% of those have received it, with payments planned for another 1,000 customers. We expect suppliers to work day and night to issue these remaining payments - there is no excuse for delay. While this is a matter for Ofgem, I have spoken to Ofgem about their responsibilities and the need for suppliers to speed up payments. I will continue to monitor this very closely.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions she has had with Ofgem on the number of people who have yet to receive compensation from energy companies for the forced installation of prepayment meters.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Suppliers have so far carried out 150,000 assessments to make sure those impacted get the compensation they deserve. Of these cases, around 2,500 customers were identified as needing compensation - and around 60% of those have received it, with payments planned for another 1,000 customers. We expect suppliers to work day and night to issue these remaining payments - there is no excuse for delay. While this is a matter for Ofgem, I have spoken to Ofgem about their responsibilities and the need for suppliers to speed up payments. I will continue to monitor this very closely.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions she has had with Ofgem on compensation from energy companies to consumers for the forced installation of prepayment meters.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Suppliers have so far carried out 150,000 assessments to make sure those impacted get the compensation they deserve. Of these cases, around 2,500 customers were identified as needing compensation - and around 60% of those have received it, with payments planned for another 1,000 customers. We expect suppliers to work day and night to issue these remaining payments - there is no excuse for delay. While this is a matter for Ofgem, I have spoken to Ofgem about their responsibilities and the need for suppliers to speed up payments. I will continue to monitor this very closely.
Asked by: Bill Wiggin (Conservative - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department is taking to help support British heat pump manufacturers.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is supporting heat pump manufacturers through the Heat Pump Investment Accelerator Competition, which will provide up to £30m in grant funding for manufacturers to create new, or expand or repurpose existing, factories to produce heat pumps and key components. The Competition is expected to create capacity for up to 270,000 heat pumps a year and support up to 1,000 jobs.
Heat pump manufacturers can also take advantage of other incentives offered by Government for industry as a whole, such as investment zones which can provide direct and indirect support such as a range of tax reliefs.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of gas and electricity suppliers' licence obligation to inspect their customers’ meters.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Licensing is matter for the expert independent regulator, Ofgem. Licence conditions require that a customer’s bill is based on the best available metering information, and that where a supplier visits a customer’s premises, staff are properly trained to carry out such visits safely and effectively. Suppliers must take all reasonable steps to obtain meter readings at least annually.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the level of energy tariff standing charges on small businesses.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Ofgem issued a Call for Input on standing charges which closed on 20 January 2024. It included an invitation to submit views on the issues affecting standing charges in the non-domestic retail sector. Ofgem are currently analysing responses and reviewing the make-up and structure of standing charges.
The Government recognises that businesses are facing pressure through their energy bills. That is why on 30 March 2024, my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State and I wrote to Ofgem, highlighting the importance of keeping standing charges as low as possible.
https://twitter.com/ClaireCoutinho/status/1774001008953217079
Asked by: Bill Wiggin (Conservative - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Green Heat Network fund in supporting shared ground loop deployment in rural off-gas grid areas.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
I refer my hon Friend to the answer I gave on 21 March 2024 to my hon Friend the Member for St Ives (Derek Thomas) to Question UIN 18922.