Wales and West Utilities (WWU) has commissioned infrastructure firm Costain to investigate the feasibility of blending hydrogen into the gas supply for industrial and commercial gas customers.
The Costain study will gather qualitative and quantitative data to establish customers’ current level of understanding of hydrogen refuelling options, and also their preferred approach to decarbonisation — for example whether by means of CCUS or hydrogen networks. It will also geographically map relevant users.
The investigation is expected to provide insight into which companies will need additional support to ensure that a transition to hydrogen blending — or full conversion to hydrogen — would not impact their operations.
Many industrial and commercial companies are considered hard to decarbonise due to the fact that their operations require high temperatures and high energy use levels, meaning that decarbonisation cannot be met through electrification alone.
Industries likely to benefit in WWU’s supply area, of Wales and the south west of England, include steel, cement and chemical manufacturers, oil and metal refineries and the paper industry.
Matthew Hindle, head of net zero and sustainability at WWU, revealed that the company owns and maintains more than 35,000km of pipes, much of which can be re-used for hydrogen.
“Studies like this help plug the gap in terms of awareness around hydrogen, as well as providing crucial evidence to include it as a low-carbon alternative to natural gas,” he said.
According to Laura Hughes, energy sector director at Costain, the study will provide WWU with an understanding of the market requirements that will help accelerate the UK’s decarbonisation mission.
Costain will also conduct a separate study exploring how hydrogen refuelling stations can be integrated into the UK’s existing gas network.
Research into the role of hydrogen, and the potential for hydrogen blending in the gas network, is expected to form a key part of the evidence required to meet the UK’s net zero ambitions, which includes a national target to generate 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030. But, while the transition to a hydrogen-based gas supply might seem like a foregone conclusion, barriers remain.
A report from climate change think tank E3G concludes that blending hydrogen into the gas supply makes neither economic nor strategic sense.
Global non-profit organisation Clean Air Task Force (CATF) — responding in March to the UK consultation on hydrogen blending into GB gas distribution networks — said blending low-carbon hydrogen into natural gas pipelines is a waste of hydrogen and will divert efforts away from effective economy-wide decarbonisation.
Other research has flagged production costs as a limiting factor.
However a trial by National Gas, which tested hydrogen blending for parts of the transmission network in Cumbria, reported in July that there had been no issues during phase one and identified no major obstacles to repurposing the network for hydrogen.
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