LONDON, Feb. 24 (UPI) -- British officials said Monday a gas-fired plant on the eastern Scottish coast will be retrofitted as a carbon capture and storage site.
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey said Shell will operate the facility, the first of its kind, in Peterhead.
The project, which is part of a $120 million government investment, would store carbon dioxide emissions under the North Sea.
Shell will retrofit a natural gas-fired plant at the site for CCS technology.
"The innovation of the U.K.'s energy industry is something we should be really proud of and the fact that we are a world leader in carbon capture and storage is a great example of our country's ingenuity," Clegg said in a statement.
Clegg said his government is committed to working alongside its Scottish counterparts to advance the region's low-carbon economy.
Scotland holds a referendum for independence from the United Kingdom later this year.
Davey told the BBC the CCS plant was planned "as if the U.K. is going to stay together."
