SSE and Equinor announce ‘world first’ blue hydrogen power plant

SSE and Equinor have announced plans to develop a “clean power hub” in the Humber region, utilising carbon capture and storage (CCS) and hydrogen.

It would include the “world’s first” power station fuelled purely by blue hydrogen at Keadby, near Scunthorpe.

The proposed plant would have peak demand of 1.8GW of hydrogen, generating around 900MW of electricity. The companies say that “with appropriate policy mechanisms in place”, the site could come online before the end of the decade.

Meanwhile, Keadby 3 would be a 900MW power station fuelled by natural gas and fitted with carbon capture technology. The captured CO2 would then be transported using shared pipelines before being stored under the North Sea. A formal consultation for Keadby 3 concluded earlier this year, with a development consent application due to be submitted in the Spring. Keadby 3 could come online by 2027.

The companies say that Keadby 3 could deliver 15 per cent of the target for 10MT of carbon captured annually by 2030, while the demand from Keadby Hydrogen could account for a third of the 5GW hydrogen production goal.

The projects would utilise the parallel hydrogen and CO2 pipeline infrastructure being developed by the Zero Carbon Humber partnership – which includes Equinor and SSE Thermal – and offshore CO2 infrastructure developed by the six-member Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP), which also includes Equinor.

Stephen Wheeler, managing director of SSE Thermal, said: “These projects would play a major role in decarbonising the UK’s flexible generation capacity, while supporting a green economic recovery in the Humber. By utilising cutting-edge carbon capture and hydrogen solutions, we can decarbonise power generation, heavy industry and hard-to-reach sectors of the economy, which will be essential in both achieving net zero emissions and ensuring a just transition for workers and communities.”

As part of the agreement announced today (8 April), SSE Thermal and Equinor are also developing options for hydrogen blending at SSE Thermal’s Keadby 2 project, which is already under construction.

The companies also intend to collaborate on other projects across the UK.

Grete Tveit, senior vice president for low-carbon solutions at Equinor, said: “We are very happy that Equinor and SSE are building on our long-term energy partnership to also develop low-carbon projects together in the UK. These world-leading power plants at Keadby will accelerate efforts across the Humber to create a decarbonised industrial cluster, and contribute to the UK’s goals for a green industrial revolution and reaching net zero.

“They are a further step in Equinor’s ambitions for the Humber, following on from our H2H Saltend project that will start producing low-carbon hydrogen at scale by the mid-2020s.”

Kwasi Kwarteng, secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, said: “The Humber region is at the heart of our commitment to tackle climate change and is already on the frontline of developing vital clean technologies which will change the way people’s homes and businesses are powered while slashing emissions.

“This new partnership will ensure that world-first technology is being developed in Scunthorpe and across the Humber, creating green jobs and bringing new investment which will benefit local communities and businesses – revitalising this industrial heartland as the UK builds back greener.”