Nottinghamshire to get new hydrogen pipeline, creating 10,000 jobs
East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward agreed it was a win for families who ‘made sacrifices in their future’ when they lost jobs in the coal industry
The first section of a hydrogen pipeline, which will revolutionise energy consumption across the UK, will be powered in north Nottinghamshire.
Energy company Cadent revealed the news at the “East Midlands Hydrogen” exhibition today (Thursday, October 16).
The East Coast Hydrogen Pipeline (EHCP), which will come from the Humber Estuary in East Yorkshire, will be connected to the HyMarnham hydrogen production site near Newark.
The site, which operates where the High Marnham coal power station stood until its decommission in 2003 and subsequent demolition in 2011, is run by GeoPura and JG Pears and produces hydrogen power.
Through its connection to north Nottinghamshire, the pipeline will be able to supply local businesses with hydrogen power, allowing them to transition away from using carbon-heavy energy sources that are bad for the environment and unsustainable due to finite supplies.
Nearby firms that have already signed up to receive a hydrogen supply include construction company Balfour Beatty and British Sugar.
Set for construction between 2031 and 2033, 90 per cent of the pipeline will be invisible, at a depth of 1.2-1.5 metres underground in most places.
It will be laid primarily in rural areas and, once operational, it could save up to 600,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year.
The project will cost a total of £700m and hydrogen production in the region in the next 25 years is estimated to create 10,000 direct jobs and 7,000 construction jobs.
Speaking to the LDRS at the exhibition, East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward said:
It’s so exciting and I think this news backs up everything I keep saying about the East Midlands, which is: we’ve got it all going on here.
“People are beginning to look from the outside and see that, which is why investment and support is coming across business and from the government as well.”
In a speech to the audience at the exhibition, Ms Ward quoted the East Midlands as having retired 27 per cent of the UK’s coal-fired power stations – despite only accounting for three per cent of the UK’s population.
“The families who live in these areas have been part of our history when these were coal-fired power stations employing thousands of people.These are communities that have made sacrifices in jobs and in what they saw as their future. So they are also the communities that this investment in clean, green energy will make such a difference for.They can actually see a future for their grandchildren, their great grandchildren and next generations being part of an energy industry that’s different but rooted in this region, part of powering Britain, leaning back into that pride that people had to be part of powering Britain.”
Hydrogen pipelines are currently being planned and are in the process of being built all over the UK. From the Humber Estuary, there is 800 kilometres of pipeline planned, with each section in a different stage of engineering.
Ultimately, a large network of hydrogen transmission pipes could provide the groundwork for hydrogen to be introduced into day-to-day life, powering cars and home appliances.
By 2032, 90 per cent of Cadent’s iron mains will have been replaced and will be made of plastic, meaning they will be able to transmit hydrogen.
READ the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Hydrogen Central
Nottinghamshire to get new hydrogen pipeline, creating 10,000 jobs, source
