Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 26, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 26, 2026
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The UK is injecting £100 million to temporarily restart biogenic CO₂ production at the Teesside plant to shield key sectors from supply disruptions caused by the Iran war‑fuelled energy and fertiliser shocks.
LONDON, March 26 (Reuters) - Britain said on Thursday it would provide 100 million pounds ($133.5 million) to restart production of biogenic carbon dioxide at a shuttered plant on Teesside for three months to avert any shortages caused by the Iran war.
CO2 was manufactured by Ensus as a byproduct of bioethanol at the Wilton International site until September, when the plant was unable to compete with lower-cost U.S. bioethanol imports after tariffs were cut in a deal agreed with U.S. President Donald Trump.
The gas is vital in food and drinks manufacturing, and has many other uses across the economy from operating theatres in hospitals to cooling nuclear reactors.
The government said disruptions to European fertiliser production had significantly reduced the reliability of CO2 imports, and rising gas prices driven by the Iran conflict, plus unplanned maintenance at several European CO2 producing sites, meant that British supply was at risk.
Business Secretary Peter Kyle said the government was acting to protect British businesses from the worst impacts of global uncertainty.
"By restarting this plant we've acted swiftly to boost the resilience of our supply chains and protect critical UK sectors like food production, water and healthcare, as well as the jobs and communities that depend on these industries," he said.
Ensus UK Chairman Grant Pearson said the agreement strengthened Britain's resilience in biogenic CO2 supplies.
"We hope to have the plant back in full operation soon," he said.
Ensus, which has had operations on Teesside in northeast England, since 2010, is owned by CropEnergies, part of Sudzucker Group.
The plant uses distillation and fermentation to convert more than 1 million tonnes of wheat a year into 400 million litres of bioethanol, which is used to make petrol more sustainable.
The process has two by-products: high protein animal feed and carbon dioxide, with a capacity for the latter of 250,000 tonnes annually.
($1 = 0.7490 pounds)
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate Holton)
The UK is providing £100 million to restart the Teesside CO2 plant to prevent shortages caused by the Iran war and disruptions in European supply.
Industries such as food and drinks manufacturing, healthcare, and nuclear cooling depend on CO2 from the Wilton International site.
The plant is operated by Ensus, owned by CropEnergies, part of the Sudzucker Group.
The plant closed due to its inability to compete with lower-cost U.S. bioethanol imports after tariffs were cut.
The plant produces biogenic CO2 as a byproduct of converting wheat into bioethanol through distillation and fermentation.
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