UK-HyRES is pleased to announce BEIS has released its latest Hydrogen Strategy Update to The Market (December 2022). We have included some of the key details below, but encourage all stakeholders to read the report.

Policy areas covered in this update are:

• hydrogen production
• hydrogen networks and storage
• uses of hydrogen in industry, power, transport and potentially heat
• creating a market: regulatory frameworks and gas blending
• hydrogen sector development covering investment, exports and imports, research and innovation, and the UK Hydrogen Champion
• international leadership in hydrogen, including through bilateral relationships, COP27, the Breakthrough Agenda, Mission Innovation, the Clean Energy Ministerial and the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy

“The Government is committed to developing the UK’s low carbon hydrogen economy: hydrogen is considered critical to delivering energy security and our decarbonisation targets, and presents a significant growth opportunity. It can play a pivotal role in our transition to a future based on renewable and nuclear energy, while ensuring that natural gas used during this transition is from reliable sources including our own North Sea production, and can provide clean energy for use in industry, power, transport, and potentially home heating.

In the UK Hydrogen Strategy we included the commitment to regularly summarise our policy development to keep industry apprised. Since publication of the Hydrogen Strategy we have doubled our low carbon hydrogen production capacity ambition to up to 10GW by 2030 (with at least half from electrolytic hydrogen) in the British Energy Security Strategy, provided greater clarity to investors through the Hydrogen Investment Package, and made substantial policy and funding strides across the hydrogen value chain. We summarised these ambitions, commitments and actions in the first Hydrogen Strategy update to the market in July 2022. This was published alongside other key elements of our policy support, which also included the launch of the first Electrolytic Hydrogen Allocation Round – offering joint Net Zero Hydrogen Fund (NZHF) and Hydrogen Production Business Model (HPBM) support – and our Hydrogen Sector Development Action Plan, and the appointment of a UK Hydrogen Champion. Hydrogen is closely integrated into Government’s wider policy development on energy security and the energy transition both domestically and internationally, with hydrogen policy previously announced through the Net Zero Strategy and the Breakthrough Agenda at COP26.

This December 2022 Hydrogen Strategy update to the market summarises the extensive activity across Government since July to develop new hydrogen policy at pace and to design and deliver funding support. This includes announcements on shortlisted hydrogen projects in the Cluster Sequencing Process, the launch of a consultation on hydrogen transport and storage (T&S) infrastructure, the publication of the HPBM Heads of Terms, and an update on the ongoing first Electrolytic Hydrogen Allocation Round. The hydrogen policy development presented here underlines the Government’s approach to promote every aspect of the UK hydrogen economy in collaboration with industry, investors and international partners to create a strong, globally competitive UK hydrogen sector.”

Quoting the initial key points aligned to UK-HyRES

• Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre to support BEIS in ongoing work to understand the critical minerals requirements for a hydrogen economy. This is an area that has been discussed extensively in UK-HyRES workshops.
• BEIS have been reviewing non-economic regulatory issues and working with regulators through the Regulators Forum to understand and start delivering priority work.
• BEIS continue to target a policy decision in 2023 on whether to allow up to 20% hydrogen blending (by volume) in GB gas distribution networks, and are building the necessary evidence base to determine whether blending meets the required safety standards, is feasible and represents value for money.
• The first meeting of the hydrogen T&S infrastructure Working Group under the Hydrogen Advisory Council took place on 10 October 2022, with the Working Group set to meet on a regular basis. The initial focus of the Working Group is to explore the immediate barriers to the development of hydrogen T&S infrastructure and consider how these might be addressed.
• The UK’s Hydrogen Champion, Jane Toogood, was appointed in July 2022 and has been engaging with stakeholders across the value chain to develop an understanding of the key challenges for the deployment of hydrogen projects and scaling up the UK hydrogen economy, and the economic opportunities hydrogen presents. Since taking on the role, the Hydrogen Champion has met with over 80 stakeholders, including hydrogen production projects, potential end users of hydrogen and investors. The Hydrogen Champion will share her initial findings in a report to the BEIS Secretary of State early in 2023. This will synthesise insights from her extensive stakeholder engagement and propose a set of recommendations on how further government and industry action could help to ensure that collective hydrogen ambitions are met.
• HSE is participating in work by the International Energy Agency Hydrogen
  Technology Collaboration Programme on Safety and Regulations, Codes and Standards for Large Scale Hydrogen Energy Applications.