Lhyfe and Centrica have signed an MoU to pilot a project for green hydrogen production off the Southern North Sea coast. The companies aim to demonstrate that an end-to-end hydrogen production, storage, and distribution system is possible in the UK.
The energy firms will also examine an additional partnership to deploy the technology at commercial scale alongside offshore wind electricity production.
In the next five to ten years, renewable green hydrogen coupled with offshore wind energy will take up an increasingly significant role in the UK’s energy mix.
Colin Brown, UK and Ireland country manager of Lhyfe, said:
“We are pleased to announce this agreement with Centrica, which represents an exciting opportunity to drive forward the clean energy transition through large-scale offshore green hydrogen production. Offshore electrolysis coupled with hydrogen storage will maximise the huge potential of offshore wind around the UK. The UK can become a global leader in the production of renewable green hydrogen, moving away from our reliance on fossil fuels and improving our homegrown energy security, while delivering net zero and boosting local economies.”
Martin Scargill, Managing Director of Centrica Storage, said:
“We are delighted to be working with our partners Lhyfe on another exciting and world-leading Hydrogen project. Hydrogen is going to play a key role in decarbonising the UK’s power supply by 2035, and our long-term ambition is for Rough, our gas storage site, to be the world’s largest hydrogen store, offering up to 16TWh of storage capacity. This pilot will show how green hydrogen can be produced, moved and stored in the UK market, all while supporting the UK on its net zero journey.”
The UK Government has raised its hydrogen production goal from 5GW to 10GW by 2030, with at least half of this originating from green hydrogen. At first, this hydrogen production will serve to decarbonise certain industrial clusters, such as the Humber cluster, but with the growing hydrogen economy, it is likely to be used in a greater range of areas.
A report by the Climate Change Committee underscored the vital role of hydrogen production, storage and utilisation in achieving a net zero electricity system by 2035 in the UK.