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An aquifer under the North Sea could be used to store the carbon dioxide emissions of Europe for the next 600 years, according to an energy company.
A consortium led by ScottishPower, which is bidding to build the first commercial-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) plant, claims the underwater aquifer makes its proposal particularly attractive.
Nick Horler, chief executive of ScottishPower, said the Longannet Power Station in Fife was ideally placed near the storage potential of the North Sea.
He added: "It contains depleted gas fields which could be used for initial capture and an expansive under-sea aquifer which reports show has enough capacity to store all of Europe's CO2 for the next 600 years.
"It could become a hub, handling carbon emissions from all over Scotland and the North of England."
CCS uses chemical solvents to strip the carbon dioxide from emissions generated by burning coal. The CO2 is then liquefied for storage. Critics of the procedure are concerned that the CO2 could seep out and contaminate land and water.
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