Decarbonising industry and businesses with hydrogen

National Gas operate Britain’s gas transmission network, whilst Northern Gas Networks and Cadent own and operate the local distribution networks.  They aim to use new and repurposed pipework to bring a supply of 100% hydrogen to the region, providing an essential route to decarbonisation for industry and making a vital contribution to Net Zero.

Starting by connecting the industrial clusters of Teesside and the Humber Region, East Coast Hydrogen aims to connect to distributed hydrogen demand in Yorkshire, Tyneside and  the East Midlands before eventually connecting with other networks further afield to create a national hydrogen network   

Recognising the important role of hydrogen in our future energy system, the UK Government is aiming to deploy 10 GW of low-carbon hydrogen production by 2030, with 6GW being green hydrogen.  East Coast Hydrogen will play a critical role in the development of a regional hydrogen market, providing the opportunity to connect up to 11 GW of hydrogen production capacity (surpassing the national 10 GW target in a single region) and up to 4 TWh of hydrogen storage by 2030. The programme will play a pivotal role in helping the local economy to thrive, satisfying the decarbonisation needs of existing industry, which use large amounts of methane and creating a valuable hydrogen supply chain, whilst retaining and attracting businesses and jobs to enable to area to prosper.

By providing the network infrastructure needed to transport low-carbon hydrogen, East Coast Hydrogen will connect producers and storage providers to a range of customers, who expect to need over 63 TWh/year of low-carbon hydrogen to decarbonise their operations. This fuel switching will save up to 12 MtCO2 per year by 2037.

Hydrogen can be used in the same way as natural gas but does not produce carbon dioxide when burned, only water, and if it is made in a ‘low carbon’ way, it is a suitable fuel to use in our Net Zero future. It is a vital decarbonisation solution for hard-to-abate industrial processes, which account for 16% of the UK’s total carbon emissions. Hydrogen also provides a decarbonisation solution for heavier forms of transport, including aviation and shipping and has the potential to play an important role in delivering low carbon-dispatchable power.

The Climate Change Committee has stated that low-carbon hydrogen will play a critical role in enabling the UK to meet its Net-Zero target by 2050, whilst The National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) has also recognised the important role of hydrogen and called for the development of a core network of hydrogen pipelines by 2035.

Upon its inception in 2021, the East Coast Hydrogen team completed a feasibility study which set out the roadmap for completing further investigation and designing the infrastructure required.

Over 120 organisations, spanning users, producers, storage suppliers and a myriad of local government and other stakeholders have now become consortium members and pledged their support to the programme. Many contributed vital data to the East Coast Hydrogen Delivery Plan which was launched at the end of 2023.  The Delivery Plan was developed using information from users about their decarbonisation plans, resulting in a programme which caters to the region’s needs. The plan complements UK government policy decisions and other hydrogen infrastructure projects and highlights the programme’s huge potential, due to over 30% of the UK’s industrial, commercial and residential gas usage located in the area.

The three East Coast Hydrogen Gas Networks are now seeking to access funding from the independent energy regulator, Ofgem to complete Front End Engineering Design (FEED) studies and tackle the planning aspects of the infrastructure. This funding will allow the Gas Networks to start re-purposing and construction by the early 2030s, enabling significant fuel switching and therefore decarbonisation in the region.

Contact us if you’re interested in speaking to us, or becoming a consortium member.