Wales’ largest renewable energy operator has announced plans for a new carbon capture project at its Pembroke Power Station. RWE has said it is developing proposals to deploy the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology at the plant as part of its Pembroke Net Zero initiative.
The project would generate up to 2.2 gigawatts (GW) of decarbonised gas and capture up to 5Mt a year of carbon dioxide - the equivalent of taking one million petrol cars off the road. The plan for Pembroke Power Station is one of three new carbon capture projects being launched by RWE in a bid to provide reliable power stations while supporting the UK’s net zero target.
The other CCS projects will be at RWE’s existing station at Staythorpe and a new-build gas fired power station with carbon capture at Stallingborough. All three projects are close to proposed CO2 networks or have access to shipping facilities, allowing the carbon dioxide to be safely transported and stored. If all three projects progress, the company said they would collectively produce enough electricity to power the equivalent of 8.1m homes in the UK while capturing 11m tonnes of CO2 each year.
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The projects would also represent a significant investment into UK energy infrastructure and play a key role in decarbonising neighbouring industrial clusters.
RWE UK country chair Tom Glover said: “In order to decarbonise the power sector, support security of supply and enable large scale industrial decarbonisation, it is important that clean gas generation projects are developed. Carbon capture can support the expansion of the other renewable and low carbon technologies that RWE is a leader in deploying, by providing energy security through firm and flexible provision of electricity that is not reliant on weather.
“I am pleased to announce our plans for three UK carbon capture projects, representing an important step in our progression towards decarbonising our existing gas fleet.”
The Pembroke CCS project is a part of RWE’s Pembroke Net Zero Centre (PNZC), a multi-technology initiative in south Wales supporting the decarbonisation of the south Wales industrial cluster. The centre brings together three pillars of energy infrastructure - the decarbonisation of Pembroke Power Station, the production of green hydrogen on site, and the development of floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea.
PNZC director Richard Little said: “We are pleased to announce our plans for a Pembroke Power Station carbon capture project. This project is a key element of our Pembroke Net Zero Centre and important to support the Welsh government ambitions for carbon neutrality. The project will support decarbonisation of the power sector, support security of supply and large scale industrial decarbonisation.”
RWE said it is currently progressing with initial environmental studies and surveys and is preparing information in order to apply to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s Track 2 Phase 2 cluster sequencing funding application process.
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