The UK government's carbon capture and storage (CCS) programme is projected to cost £264bn by 2050, according to climate experts Dr Andrew Boswell and Simon Oldridge.
This far exceeds the £21.7bn figure often cited in government press releases.
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The cost will be split between the public and private sectors, but history suggests the public will bear most of it.
A House of Commons public accounts committee found that roughly 25% of public CCS costs will come directly from the government, with the rest added to energy bills.
This could mean up to £198bn in extra levies on household bills.
Additionally, an uncosted commitment to pay a “premium” for hydrogen produced by CCS for 15 years could add tens of billions more.
CCS: Not a Climate Solution but a Fossil Fuel Lifeline
Despite government claims, CCS is not essential for cutting carbon emissions.
The Climate Change Committee says its role is “limited to sectors where there are few, or no, alternatives,” but its own data shows only 5-6% of UK CCS deployment will address hard-to-abate industrial emissions.
The majority of CCS will be attached to new fossil fuel-burning power stations, wood-burning power stations, and hydrogen production from fossil gas.
Almost all projects in the first tranche are fossil fuel-based.
Alternatives exist. Battery technology is evolving rapidly, enabling a balanced electricity supply without fossil fuels.
Producing hydrogen from electrolysis using renewable electricity will cost half as much as from gas with CCS by 2050.
