Two houses being built at Northern Gas Networks’ site in Low Thornley, Gateshead will be the UK’s first with household appliances fuelled entirely with hydrogen.
The semi-detached homes, funded with the help of the Hy4Heat programme, will open in April 2021. They are not intended to be habitable, but to showcase hydrogen-fuelled applications in a real-world domestic setting, with the hydrogen supplied from tanks. They will be there for 3-10 years.
The hydrogen house project is aligned with larger hydrogen schemes including establishing a Hydrogen Neighbourhood, and development of plans for a potential Hydrogen Town before the end of this decade.
The project has a £250,000 grant from Hy4Heat and is being run by gas companies Northern Gas Networks and Cadent, who have both also input £250,000 of funding each.
The houses are planned to be open to members of the public, who will be able to view appliances and see how they compare to existing ones. Local schools, colleges and universities will also be welcomed to learn about the new technology, as well as potential careers in the emerging green economy and in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects.
Stay up to date with New Power – subscribe to our FREE weekly newsletter here
Further reading
BEIS sets out proposed CCUS timetable, aims for investment decision on two 2020s clusters by 1H 2022
The fifties had some good points, but do they seal the deal for hydrogen?
ITM’s hydrogen ‘Gigafactory’ moves into manufacturing operation – read our interview
Scottish Government pledges £62 million to help Aberdeen take the hydrogen route to Net Zero