PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE
Energy Transition Projects - 11 January 2022 (Commons/Commons Chamber)

May I start by welcoming the hon. Gentleman back to his place?

The Government support the energy transition by harnessing the industry’s existing potential to exploit new and emerging green technologies. As regards Scotland, we have a £20 million pot for tidal stream. The Acorn project has been allocated £40 million in carbon capture, usage and storage development funding so far, and in the hon. Gentleman’s own area, the Ayrshire growth deal has secured investment of £251 million, including up to £18 million for a centre for research and a low-carbon energy and circular economy.

I thank the Minister for his response and his kind wishes. The UK Government have decided not to rethink and reverse their decision not to fund the carbon capture, utilisation and storage facility at St Fergus, and the Chancellor has failed to match the Scottish Government’s £500 million investment in a just transition fund for the north-east and Moray. By deploying CCUS, hydrogen and direct air capture technology in Scotland, the Scottish cluster would support an average of 15,100 jobs between 2022 and 2050. Do major Scottish projects only have priority in the months ahead of an independence referendum?

The hon. Gentleman will not be surprised to hear that I disagree with him on the independence referendum, but we engage regularly with the Scottish cluster and Acorn, and I met Storegga before Christmas. I have also met with my hon. Friend the Member for Banff and Buchan (David Duguid), the MP for St Fergus, and have been to his constituency recently. Just to be absolutely clear, the Scottish cluster is the reserve cluster, which means that it met the eligibility criteria and performed to a good standard in the evaluation criteria. We also recently published our track 2 update for CCUS, which highlights our increased ambition of capturing and storing 20 to 30 megatonnes per annum by 2030. I think there is a great future there for the Scottish cluster.

I welcome the hon. Member for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock (Allan Dorans) back to his place—even though he did kind of trample over my question a little bit. Will my right hon. Friend confirm the UK Government’s support for the oil and gas sector and its vital role in driving the energy transition to net zero? As part of that support, will he confirm what recent engagement he has had with the Acorn CCS project in my constituency of Banff and Buchan on its role as the first reserve cluster?

As I have mentioned, I met with Storegga before Christmas, and my hon. Friend and I also talked about this in his constituency in early December. I am looking forward to further engagement with the cluster. I also agree with what he said about oil and gas. We have a North sea transition deal, and the important thing is transition. It would be mad, particularly at this time of elevated gas prices, to do anything to close down the North sea, and it is not our objective to do so. Therefore, we should stick to the transition deal, support our key oil and gas sector in the North sea and absolutely reject a lot of the politics coming out of the SNP, which has turned to be anti-North sea, which is not holding Scotland’s best interests at heart.

Of course, it is not just on carbon capture underground storage where the UK Government have betrayed Scotland’s interests. As the Minister will be acutely aware, Scottish renewables projects continue to pay the highest level of grid charging anywhere in the entirety of Europe. Indeed, I was speaking to an operator just recently who told me that over the lifespan of his project, he anticipates that it will pay £1 billion in grid charging; meantime, a project in East Anglia will not pay a single penny. Is that a Union of equals?

I am always pleased to take a question from the SNP Front Bench, although I notice that the hon. Gentleman did not say anything about nuclear, the North sea transition deal or the recent announcement of a £20 million funding pot for tidal. He did mention transition charges. He will know that Ofgem recognises the importance of transition charging arrangements, which is why it is currently considering responses to its call for evidence on transition charging reform. That is already being covered, but I would like to hear from the hon. Gentleman—he may have another question—that he is going to change his mind on nuclear and supporting the North sea transition deal.

Of course, the Minister’s continual deflection to Ofgem fails to meet the needs of businesses in Scotland. He will also be acutely aware that under the Energy Act 2004—section 185, I believe it is—he could take action to change the status quo, but he chooses not to, and the reason is quite clear. The National Grid is clear that in a couple of years Scottish projects will pay £465 million into the grid, while projects in England and Wales will cumulatively get a subsidy of £30 million—a renewables robbery in plain sight. Is it not the case that while Scotland has the energy as part of this United Kingdom, it does not have the power?

I am not sure quite how to respond to that, but I remind the hon. Gentleman that there is a call for evidence on this and we are awaiting the responses to that call. Once again, I remind him of the support being given by the UK Government to renewables in Scotland: the £20 million tidal pot; the quadrupling of offshore wind capacity across the UK over the next decade; support for CCUS—all these things. It is about time he had a word with his party colleagues back in Edinburgh and got them to have a sensible energy policy when it comes to both the North sea and nuclear before he comes here and lectures us.