Accelerating Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Technologies (ACT)
ACT is a European Research Area Network (ERA-NET) Cofund supporting collaborative projects to accelerate the deployment of carbon capture, utilisation and storage CCUS in Europe.
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In 2016 the UK joined a consortium of 9 European countries to co-fund collaborative innovation projects into carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) called Accelerating CCS Technologies (ACT).
ACT is a European Research Area Network (ERA-NET) Cofund, a tool established by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 programme for research and innovation. ERA-NET Cofund enables European countries to join forces when it comes to funding RD&D and innovation on subjects of high European interest.
Under the scheme, 9 European countries - Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, and the UK – have provided €25.34 million to support collaborative projects that can accelerate the deployment of CCUS within Europe. The European Commission added a further €11.26 million, giving a total pot of €36.6 million.
Within the €36.6 million BEIS has committed £4.4 million, matched with a further £2.2 million in co-funding from the European Commission, to support UK participation in 5 collaborative projects with European partners.
Of the 8 projects selected in May 2017 the UK is contributing to 5:
ACORN: aims to initiate a low cost full chain carbon capture and storage project in North East Scotland that is readily scalable to nationally significant CO2 infrastructure
ALIGN: a large scale project aiming to accelerate the demonstration and implementation of European CCUS projects by addressing specific R&D gaps across the CCUS chain, including capture, transportation, storage and utilisation
DETECT: aims to provide pragmatic and reliable tools to reduce risks and costs for CO2 storage operations
ELEGANCY: aims to fast-track the decarbonisation of Europe’s energy system by exploiting the synergies between two key low-carbon technologies: CCS and hydrogen
PRE-ACT: an industry-driven research project with a strong focus on improving strategies for monitoring and management of pore pressure distribution to address the main storage-related challenges for the deployment of CCS: capacity, confidence and cost.