Equinor and SSE Thermal have awarded two contracts for work on a proposed hydrogen storage facility at Aldbrough.
Engineering company Atkins and sustainability consultancy Environmental Resources Management (ERM) have been awarded major contracts, representing an important milestone and progress in the proposed development of one of the world’s largest hydrogen storage facilities.
The project would see hydrogen stored either within the existing facility at the Aldbrough Gas Storage facility in East Yorkshire or at a new hydrogen site adjacent to it.
Atkins has been awarded the contract to conduct a feasibility study to assess the design of the hydrogen storage caverns at Aldbrough and pipelines to transport hydrogen to and from the proposed new Humber Low Carbon Pipelines (HLPC) being developed as part of the Zero Carbon Humber partnership. The outcome of the assessment will provide the foundation for the next phase of scoping work as the project matures. The contract also includes the option for subsequent pre-FEED (front end engineering design) work.
ERM’s contract covers the environmental, health, safety and permitting aspects of the scheme.
The partners say the store could be in operation by early 2028, with an initial expected capacity of at least 320GWh.
Dan Sadler, Vice President of UK Low Carbon Solutions at Equinor, said: “Equinor has ambitious plans to develop a hydrogen economy in the Humber, including production, usage and storage, which will make it an international beacon for low carbon energy. We are delighted to award contracts to two leading British companies that bring real expertise in their field and can help to make this ambition a reality.”
Oonagh O’Grady, Head of Hydrogen Development at SSE Thermal, said: “We know hydrogen storage will be crucial in creating a large-scale hydrogen economy in the UK, balancing production and demand and accelerating the transition to net zero. The contracts awarded to Atkins and ERM represent an important milestone in our plans for hydrogen storage at Aldbrough, which would play a major role in building a low-carbon future in the Humber.”