ScottishPower today welcomed the UK Government’s Framework for the Development of Clean Coal as outlined by the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Miliband.

The ScottishPower Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) consortium, which includes Shell, National Grid and Aker Clean Carbon, can confirm it has submitted its detailed technical and commercial study to the Department of Energy and Climate Change as part of the UK Government’s competition to fund the country’s first full-scale CCS demonstration plant.

The submission marks a progression in the competition. The bids will now be assessed within the agreed timetable, with contracts for the detailed design stage expected to be concluded early next year.

Nick Horler, ScottishPower Chief Executive, said: “The UK Government CCS competition is progressing well, and we are delighted to have submitted this detailed study. This is another major step forward in developing CCS technology into a working reality.

“This competition will facilitate the biggest CCS demonstration project anywhere in the world and I firmly believe that we have the required government support, the technical expertise and the abundant natural resources to lead the world in the development of this technology

“The ScottishPower Consortium is ready to demonstrate CCS at a commercial scale at Longannet from 2014 and help the UK realise the massive economic and environmental potential of this revolutionary technology.”

Notes to editors:

• ScottishPower is one of the two remaining participants in the UK Government’s competition to develop a commercial scale Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project.
• To enable CCS to be delivered quickly it has formed a consortium with Aker Clean Carbon, Shell and National Grid.
• The competition was launched in late 2007 to encourage energy companies to develop commercially viable CCS schemes. There were originally nine entrants.
• The ScottishPower Consortium is currently operating a carbon capture prototype at its power station at Longannet in Fife, Scotland. It was installed in May 2009 and has run for over 2000 hours.
• It is the only energy company in the UK which is capturing carbon on a working coal-fired power station. This programme is helping to prove the chemistry of carbon capture and uses the same technology that can be retrofitted to the tens of thousands of coal-fired power stations worldwide.

Media information – Simon McMillan 0141 566 4875/ 07753 622 257