National Gas advances UK hydrogen pipeline project with engineering design

National Gas has moved into the advanced engineering design phase for a 350-mile hydrogen pipeline linking St Fergus in northeast Scotland to Teesside on England's east coast, the gas transmission system operator said in a statement Sept. 17.

The pipeline is the second phase of Project Union, and National Gas plans to develop a 1,500-mile national hydrogen network connecting major industrial clusters and hydrogen production centers, the company said.

A first phase will connect Teesside, through Yorkshire and the Humber, and south into the East Midlands, through a 300-mile pipeline.

"This network will play an important role in connecting hydrogen clusters across key industrial regions, to power British industry and strengthen our energy security," National Gas Chief Commercial Officer Ian Radley said in the statement.

The engineering design will define technical requirements, estimate costs and assess risks before detailed construction work begins.

The pipeline would "unlock hydrogen's potential to decarbonize UK industry with production of clean fuels, ammonia and SAF at Grangemouth from low-carbon hydrogen," Hydrogen Scotland CEO Nigel Holmes said in the statement.

The backbone would also "reduce renewables curtailment and enable access to large-scale underground hydrogen storage sites for the long-duration responsive power generation which is essential for UK energy security," Holmes added.

Industrial implications

The project's route connects two of Britain's most strategically significant energy hubs. St Fergus, in Aberdeenshire, is already a major gas reception terminal handling a significant share of UK offshore gas supply, while Teesside hosts a concentration of heavy manufacturing, chemicals and process industries that are among the hardest to decarbonize through electrification alone.

National Gas said the project will repurpose existing natural gas pipelines where possible, supplemented by new construction, to create a dedicated 100% hydrogen network.

The project is part of a £164 million funding package covering three National Gas projects that together aim to deliver more than 50% of the proposed national hydrogen network, the company said.