UK Government releases H2 Strategy

The UK Government has today released their UK Hydrogen Strategy. The UK’s first-ever Hydrogen Strategy drives forward the commitments laid out in the Prime Minister’s ambitious 10 Point Plan for a green industrial revolution by setting the foundation for how the UK Government will work with industry to meet its ambition for 5GW of low carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030 – which could replace natural gas in powering around 3 million UK homes each year as well as powering transport and businesses, particularly heavy industry.

Hydrogen will play an important role in decarbonising polluting, energy-intensive industries like chemicals, oil refineries, power and heavy transport like shipping, HGV lorries and trains, by helping these sectors move away from fossil fuels. UK government analysis suggests that 20-35% of the UK’s energy consumption by 2050 could be hydrogen-based. This view is shared by the UK’s independent Climate Change Committee, and could be critical to meeting the UK targets of net zero emissions by 2050 and cutting emissions by 78% by 2035.

Measures included in the UK’s first-ever Hydrogen Strategy include:

- outlining a ‘twin track’ approach to supporting multiple technologies including ‘green’ electrolytic and ‘blue’ carbon capture-enabled hydrogen production, and committing to providing further detail in 2022 on the government’s production strategy

- collaborating with industry to develop a UK standard for low carbon hydrogen giving certainty to producers and users that the hydrogen the UK produces is consistent with net zero while supporting the deployment of hydrogen across the country

- undertaking a review to support the development of the necessary network and storage infrastructure to underpin a thriving hydrogen sector

- working with industry to assess the safety, technical feasibility, and cost effectiveness of mixing 20% hydrogen into the existing gas supply. Doing so could deliver a 7% emissions reduction on natural gas

- launching a hydrogen sector development action plan in early 2022 setting out how the government will support companies to secure supply chain opportunities, skills and jobs in hydrogen