Minister promises hydrogen village decision before Xmas

A decision on Northern Gas Networks’ (NGN) proposed hydrogen village trial in Redcar will be taken before Christmas, Lord Callanan has told Utility Week.

NGN’s proposal is the only viable village trial left in the running after the government rejected Cadent’s bid for a hydrogen village trial in Cheshire because of a lack of local support.

A final decision on the hydrogen village trial has long been scheduled for the Autumn 2023, but this is yet to materialise. Any delay would increase concerns that NGN would not be able to report back to government in time for its 2026 decision on the future of hydrogen in the UK’s heating mix.

Asked if there definitely is going to be an announcement on Redcar in the Autumn, the minister responded: “Yes there is. We’re looking closely at it at the moment. There are obviously a lot of plusses and minuses to consider but we want to make a decision before Christmas.”

He added: “Northern Gas Networks has submitted their proposals, the costs, the details of the trial. Clearly we want to make sure that any health and safety concerns are properly examined about potentially putting hydrogen into existing properties but no final decisions have been made yet.

“There are obviously advantages and disadvantages to consider but it is certainly our intention to make a final decision before Christmas.”

Northern Gas Networks’ Redcar-based proposal involves switching the gas supply from natural gas to clean burning hydrogen for around 2,000 homes and businesses in parts of the town, including the town centre, Warrenby, Coatham and an area of Kirkleatham.

Redcar was selected in part as it lies within the East Coast industrial cluster and is in close proximity to established energy infrastructure including hydrogen production and storage facilities. The varied housing in the local area is also said to be representative of homes throughout the rest of the UK.

Following local opposition in Whitby, Cadent and its partner British Gas opted to modify the proposals and offer residents the chance to opt out of the trial and stay on natural gas. This would have entailed parallel mains being laid to carry natural gas while the existing one was converted to hydrogen. The overall proposal was ultimately rejected by ministers, however.

Responding to the government’s decision not to proceed with Whitby a Cadent spokesperson said the news would be “disappointing to the many residents who told us they wanted their community to play a pioneering role in decarbonising how we heat our homes” and expressed gratitude to the community.

The spokesperson added: “Reaching net zero and keeping the UK’s homes and businesses safely and securely supplied with energy needs the whole of society to work together. Should the trial progress in Redcar, it will be an important step forward: NGN have our best wishes and full support.

“This isn’t goodbye from us to the residents of Whitby. Beyond a final decision from government on the project location in the Autumn, we will continue to keep people in the community safe and warm as their gas distribution network. We will also continue to work relentlessly to make sure that our customers have access to options that meet their diverse needs on the journey to net zero.”

Concerns that government is going cold on the prospect of hydrogen for home heating have been growing following several recent announcements.

Last week the government said that “no one should hold back on installing a heat pump or connecting to a heat network on the basis that hydrogen may become an option later”, in response to the Committee on Climate Change’s recommendation to “publicly narrow” the potential role of hydrogen.

The government’s infrastructure advisor, the National Infrastructure Commission also recently ruled that hydrogen for home heating should be ruled out.

Speaking to Utility Week in our most-recent Digital Weekly edition, NIC chair Sir John Armitt stressed that there is no need to wait until 2026 to rule out hydrogen for home heating and called on the government to take the decision now.