SSE Thermal has revealed it is developing a first-of-a-kind project in the Humber that will see hydrogen production, storage and power generation brought together by 2025.
The Aldbrough Hydrogen Pathfinder project, which is set to be located at SSE Thermal and Equinor’s existing Aldbrough Gas Storage site on the East Yorkshire coast, the ambition will be to demonstrate the interactions between hydrogen electrolysis, hydrogen cavern storage and 100 percent hydrogen dispatchable power.
The concept will see green power sourced from the grid through Renewable PPAs, with hydrogen then produced through a 35MW electrolyser. This will then be stored in a conventional salt cavern before later being used in a 100 percent hydrogen-fired turbine. At times of system need, flexible power will be exported back to the grid. The hydrogen storage, meanwhile, is expected to benefit offtakers in other sectors in future.
Looking ahead, the goal is to begin producing hydrogen and start filling the cavern from 2025, dependent on planning consents and reaching a final investment decision later this year. SSE Thermal believes that it will be able to support the evidence base for a wider deployment of flexible hydrogen power as part of the UK’s net zero journey, while supporting its own wider Humber ambitions too. It is set to seek support for the project through the Net Zero Hydrogen Fund.
For more information visit www.netzeroeast.uk
