GovWire

The government believes that low carbon hydrogen may have the potential to offer a strategic option for decarbonising heat in buildings, alongside other options. As set out in the Heat and Buildings Strategy, the government intends to make policy decisions in 2026 on what role hydrogen should play in decarbonising heating. The hydrogen heating village trial will provide essential evidence for those decisions.

BEIS and Ofgem issued an open letter to the 4 Gas Distribution Networks (GDNs) on 6 May 2022 (initially published on Ofgems site), setting out the expected requirements for GDN applications for funding for the next stages of the village trial.

Proposals received

In March 2023, Cadent and NGN submitted detailed design proposals for hydrogen heating village trial projects in Whitby, Ellesmere Port and Redcar, Teesside, respectively. The proposals submitted by Cadent and NGN were applications for funding to convert a large village to hydrogen or alternative heating solution instead of natural gas.

The proposals were assessed against the requirements for funding applications set out in an annex of the open letter issued to the gas networks, as well as overarching criteria such as the value for money and deliverability of the project.

The department continues to develop and discuss the proposal from NGN and will announce its final decision on the trial later this year.

The knowledge and experience gained in delivering trials in communities, together with the results of our wider research and development and testing programme, will enable the government to take strategic decisions in 2026 on the role of hydrogen in decarbonising heat.