Wales & West Utilities commits to crucial hydrogen research to tackle carbon emissions for hard-to-decarbonise industrial and commercial users.
The UK is home to an extensive natural gas network, transporting and distributing around 600TWh of gaseous fuel to domestic, commercial, and industrial consumers, and almost 300TWh to generate power. In energy terms, the UK uses around three times more gas than electricity with around 85% of households using gas as their primary source of heating and gas is used to generate roughly 30% of electricity at any given time.
Supplying an area with a population of 7.5 million people across Wales and the south west of England, Wales & West Utilities (WWU) is on a mission to decarbonise their 35,000km share of the natural gas network. A safe, secure and reliable asset that is out of sight, the organisation is pioneering research on how the existing network can be re-purposed to carry green gases like hydrogen and biomethane.
Both a 20% hydrogen blend and use of dedicated hydrogen in a range of sectors are being considered by the UK government as near-term and longer-term solutions for decarbonising the nation’s energy system and becoming a clean energy superpower.
Whilst some work has been undertaken to date to understand the readiness of I&C customers to convert to hydrogen, more analysis is required. This study will map out the considerations for a range of industrial sites, each with unique energy requirements, equipment and operational demands. It will assess how a move to hydrogen – including as a blend with natural gas – for domestic customers could impact strategic planning for gas networks to maintain sufficient network resilience for I&C users.
This new research is a critical part of the energy transition puzzle for I&C customers – often called ‘hard to decarbonise’ or ‘sensitive users.’ These are customers who are connected to the distributed gas network and rely on natural gas for their operations. I&C customers share the same gas pipes as homes, commercial buildings and power generation – however, due to their significant gas demand, they may be impacted by either a move to a hydrogen blend or complete conversion of the existing network to hydrogen.
This project recognises that a wide range of energy users are connected to the same networks, so it is vital to understand the system impacts of their options and choices to effectively plan the energy system transition.
Greenhouse gas emissions from industry are estimated to have been at 52.8 MtCO2e - or approximately 14% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the UK in 2023. Wales & West Utilities has over 5,100 industrial connections across its network, and an additional 61,700 commercial properties such as offices, schools and hotels.
Within WWU’s network is the South Wales Industrial Cluster, the second largest emitting industrial cluster in the UK. South Wales has a rich industrial heritage; home to industries like cement, paper, steel, mineral wool, chemicals and food. As the UK accelerates its efforts to reach net zero emissions, industrial and commercial gas users are faced with the challenge of decarbonising energy intensive industrial processes.
In many industrial sectors, there is a considerable demand for process heat in the temperature range of 150 and 500 degrees Celsius. Achieving this heat is a major challenge. For many of these industries, proposed low-carbon technologies, such as electrification, simply will not meet these high process heats. Hydrogen on the other hand, works in a similar way to natural gas, and shows great potential for achieving these temperatures.
The study will also look at how machinery and equipment could be impacted switching from natural gas to hydrogen. Many natural gas appliances today can accept up to a 20% hydrogen blend without modifications, however this part of the study will examine what changes may need to be made to machinery in industry.
The work will be delivered in several stages, starting with a literature review to understand the extent of I&C work to date, and the learnings that can be applied within this study. This will include a deep dive into ‘Lessons Learned from the Past’ recently published by WWU. WWU will use its ‘Industrial Infill Methodology’ work to directly engage with I&C customers (including power generation). The research will also geographically map users and help WWU understand which customers will need additional support.
Engagement with I&C customers will help determine any major sensitivities for each site, and whether customers are likely to remain as a gas consumer and convert to hydrogen/deploy CCUS or decarbonise through an alternative means. The assessment is also expected to establish the market’s current level of understanding around hydrogen refuelling plans and users’ preferred ways to decarbonise their operations, such as through Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage solutions or using a hydrogen network.
Once complete, the study will help WWU to undertake network planning for the delivery of hydrogen to domestic customers, with site sensitivity at the forefront of its decisions and understanding any behind the meter investment required by I&C customers to ensure hydrogen readiness.
Ensuring I&C customers can meet their energy demands in a cleaner, greener way is critical to economic growth, and the development of skills and employment opportunities at local and national levels. Hydrogen has great potential to help us all switch to clean energy as part of a whole system approach, using the UK’s extensive existing and reliable gas network that has served customers for decades.
Moreover, the research will provide evidence to support future work, consultations, and investment decisions in the industrial and commercial sector. Research into the role of hydrogen, and the potential for blending solutions in the gas network, is a key part of providing the evidence to drive forward the UK’s net zero ambitions and reaching national targets of generating 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030.
WWU has partnered with Costain on a range of decarbonisation projects, including conducting a separate study exploring how hydrogen refuelling stations could be integrated into the UK’s existing gas distribution network to enable the growth of hydrogen in transport called HyDrive.
