UK regional gas distributor Northern Gas Networks (NGN) has completed the country’s first extended trial of blending hydrogen into gas supplies via a public network.

Up to 20pc hydrogen was blended into the gas supply of 668 houses, a church and a school in Winlaton in the Gateshead area of northeast England for 11 months as part of a project called Hydeploy. Customers continued to use their gas supply as normal, without any changes needed.

“This project has demonstrated that hydrogen blending can play a role in decarbonising heat with no disruption,” says Fergal O’Donovan, hydrogen programme manager at NGN.

668 – Homes in blending trial

The Gateshead trials formed the second phase of the Hydeploy project. Phase one, conducted by the UK’s largest gas distributor, Cadent, involved blending hydrogen into the gas supply of 100 homes and around 30 commercial buildings on a closed network at Keele University for 18 months, ending in spring 2021.

The gas industry is keen to promote gas blending into its existing networks, and results from the Gateshead trials will be passed to the government later this year. The government says it expects to decide next year whether to support up to 20pc blending as part of its policy on hydrogen. Even if it backs the use of blending, the government says it does not expect it to start on a commercial scale until 2025.

“By blending hydrogen into the gas network, the people in Winlaton could start using a greener gas without having to make any changes to their home or the way they use their heating and cooking, forming part of the evidence we are putting to government to enable their 2023 policy decision on blending hydrogen into the gas networks as a means to support decarbonisation targets,” says Angela Needle, director of strategy at Cadent.

The government says it recognises the potential value of blending to support the early development of the hydrogen economy by providing early demand while other applications and infrastructure develop. But it is also mindful that blending should not use hydrogen that could otherwise be utilised to decarbonise sectors where electrification is not an option.

“Therefore, we will be looking at the impact of blending on the supply of hydrogen to those end-users who require it to decarbonise. This is likely to be taken into account in the design of any potential financial support that is available for hydrogen producers for blended volumes,” the government said in a hydrogen strategy update issued in July.

Hydrogen villages

Earlier this year, Ofgem shortlisted two locations for a ‘hydrogen village’ demonstration, which will see natural gas swapped to 100pc hydrogen in around 2,000 properties for about two years, starting in 2025.

Speaking at a recent industry event, Kwasi Kwarteng, UK secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, described the hydrogen village concept as “revolutionary”.

However, the use of hydrogen for domestic heating int the UK remains a contentious issue, with some arguing electric heat pumps would be a better long-term options and that hydrogen supply should instead be directed at industrial applications. The government says it aims to make a strategic decision on the role of hydrogen in heating in 2026.

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Author: Stuart Penson