C-Capture launches £2.7 million project

C-Capture’s £2.7 million project will see carbon capture technology deployed at two UK glass manufacturing sites, a world first for the industry.

The compatibility of C-Capture’s unique, solvent-based technology will be trialled and assessed with real-world flue gas at Glass Futures’ research facility in St Helens, as well as member NSG Pilkington’s site in St Helens, UK.

C-Capture, developers of world-leading chemical processes for carbon dioxide removal, secured £1.7m in funding from the BEIS £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP).

The funding is part of the £20 million Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage (CCUS) Innovation 2.0 programme aimed at accelerating the deployment of next-generation CCUS technology in the UK.

£2.7 million will be used for pioneering project ‘XLR8 CCS’, in conjunction with leading consulting and engineering company, Wood.

The project will deliver feasibility studies and deploy carbon capture solvent compatibility units (CCSCUs) across three industries: cement, Energy from Waste (EfW) and glass.

This will be the first time a carbon capture and storage unit has been deployed at a glass manufacturing site.

Rob Ireson, Innovation and Partnerships Manager at Glass Futures, said: “This project has the potential to build a better understanding of the technology and associated economics and risks, thus breaking down barriers for the glass sector to develop and adopt carbon capture technologies. As such we’re delighted to have this opportunity to work with C-Capture and NSG to help lead the first demonstration of a carbon-capture technology on an industrial glass furnace.”

The UK’s glass industry contributes around £2 billion every year to the economy and emits over 2 million tonnes of CO₂ annually in the UK.

CCUS has been identified as an essential component in the route to decarbonisation but barriers to adopting CCUS technology currently exist – such as technology maturity, flue gas compatibility in multiple industries, and cost.

Project success will see commercial-scale carbon capture facilities across the three industries by 2030, which could capture millions of tonnes of CO₂ per year.