CEO Jon Butterworth responded to the announcement, stating:

“We welcome the Government’s Spending Review commitment to fund vital carbon capture projects, including the Acorn Project in Scotland, which recognises their pivotal role in decarbonising our economy, securing Britain’s energy and creating the jobs of the future. As Britain’s national gas network, we’re looking forward to working together with Government and industry to deliver these important projects and realise the opportunity of a cleaner, more secure energy future for the whole country.”

The Acorn Project, which National Gas is proud to support, will be enabled by SCO₂T Connect, a critical onshore pipeline developed and delivered by National Gas. This infrastructure will transport captured CO₂ from major industrial and power generation sites, including Grangemouth and Peterhead, to permanent storage at St Fergus. SCO₂T Connect is expected to unlock billions in economic value, support nearly 18,000 jobs, and secure the future of key sectors in Scotland and beyond.

Following the announcement, Secretary of State Ed Miliband visited the St Fergus Terminal to announce the £200 million awarded to the Acorn Project and its partners, demonstrating further support for carbon capture projects in the Spending Review. Luke Rowlands, Head of Customer, Stakeholder and Business Development, attended the visit on behalf of National Gas.

As part of the visit, National Gas and the Acorn partners held a roundtable with the Secretary of State, who reiterated his desire for the project to be delivered at pace and expressed his commitment to helping achieve this.

The announcements at Spending Review represent major steps forward in enabling the decarbonisation of industry and delivering the infrastructure needed for a clean, secure energy future.