U.K. Prunes Green Bank, Will Demo Carbon Capture

It looks like the U.K. is backing off on the hoped for "green bank" and will instead be creating a fund for green projects. While it had been speculated that the government might create a full-fledged bank with a mandate of funding green projects, the Treasury wants it to remain as a fund, kick-started with £2bn.

It has also been reported that a substantial portion of the £2bn has already been allocated to existing or previously approved projects. The decision was protested today by Greenpeace activists who scaled the Treasury building this morning at 6 a.m. and hung a banner that reads: "Remember George, green bank = new jobs."

Several other green initiatives were announced by the Dept. of Energy and Climate Change, including £1 Bil for a carbon capture and sequestration demo project and £400 Mil for renewable heat incentive for small-scale projects such as ground-source heat pumps. The DECC had apparently sought £2 Bil for the CCS project to bury carbon emissions