India’s Essar Group has set out plans to plough $3.6bn into low-carbon hydrogen, biofuels and other decarbonisation projects in the UK and India over the next five years via a newly formed division of the business called Essar Energy Transition (EET).

Of the total investment, $2.4bn is aimed at the group’s Stanlow refining complex in northwest England, where the company has already announced an array of major projects. These include two blue hydrogen production facilities developed under a joint venture with clean energy developer Progressive Energy, and a carbon-capture plant that will feed into offshore storage capacity under Liverpool Bay as part of the region’s Hynet low-carbon cluster.

“The launch of EET is a major milestone in Essar’s long-standing commitment to put the UK at the forefront of low-carbon energy” Ruia, Essar Capital

Another project underway at Stanlow is the installation of a new furnace in the crude distillation unit that will run on 100pc hydrogen.

The investments at Stanlow will create the UK’s largest energy transition hub and reduce industrial emissions in the northwest region by about a fifth, Essar says.

“The launch of EET is a major milestone in Essar’s long-standing commitment to put the UK at the forefront of low-carbon energy,” says Prashant Ruia, director at Essar Capital. The Stanlow investment can provide a blueprint for the transformation of traditional industries into hubs for the production of low-carbon energy, he says.

In addition to the Stanlow investments, EET will also invest $1.2bn in developing a global supply hub for low-carbon fuels in India, including green hydrogen and green ammonia. Ammonia will be shipped from India to the UK, Europe and the rest of the world to meet expanding market demand for green hydrogen, the company says.

---

Author: Stuart Penson