British power company Drax will pause its planned 2-billion-pound ($2.45 billion) UK investment in bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). Awaiting government clarity on support, the company declared. 

The government has recently said that it will invest £20 billion in carbon capture technology over the next two decades. Drax has welcomed this inclusion in the spring budget announcement. However, the firm said that the government would need to make a firm commitment to BECCS before it could invest the funds to deploy the technology at its 2.6-gigawatt biomass power plant in Yorkshire, northern England. 

“Until we have this clarity, we are pausing our multi-million-pound investment programme in the UK BECCS project,” Drax CEO Will Gardiner said in a statement. 

Gardiner called on the British government to detail its support in its measure to support energy security later this month. 

Britain’s climate change advisers released a report this month noting that the technology is necessary for the country’s plans to slash emissions in the electricity sector to meet its 2050 net zero target. 

The company is exploring opportunities to build BECCS technology in other countries. It has hosted delegates and government officials from Poland, Indonesia, and the U.S.A.

The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) offers $85 per tonne of stored greenhouse gas removal using BECCS, while Britain has not yet established a clear market mechanism.