Green hydrogen, carbon capture and unique supply chain production streams could act as a magnet for investment in the Humber, with the region paraded as a potential gigafactory location.
Key parties behind major plans to decarbonise the region shared a virtual stage at The Waterline Summit, underlining how the grand efforts underway should not only protect existing industry, but welcome more.
A £75 million bid has just been submitted to realise an industrial hydrogen production and supply network, running parallel to a pan-Humber carbon capture and storage system.
Leading that Zero Carbon Humber push is Equinor, with Dan Sadler, 海角视频 low carbon strategy director for the broad energy business, setting up at Saltend Chemicals Park.
He said: “Equinor is not in the Humber by chance. We believe it represents the most credible at-scale decarbonisation opportunity in the 海角视频, possibly in Europe.
"The unique blend of different technologies with established industries provides the best opportunity for an at-scale low carbon economy.”
Referencing the unenviable title of most carbon intensive cluster in the 海角视频, Mr Sadler said: “Outside, looking in, the Humber can look big and very scary, but I think it is well coordinated and well aligned in its ambition.
“There is the ability to capture carbon for those who don’t have the ability to fuel switch, and we have hydrogen for those industries that can fuel switch. A blue hydrogen breakthrough facilitating a growing green hydrogen base.”
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As reported the scheme would take in the South Bank refining cluster, British Steel and Keadby, with Drax the furthest point, as well as other operators at Saltend, where the Hydrogen to Humber production plant would sit, with phase one the on-site Triton power station.
“It is a lofty ambition but that project alone would reduce emissions by 900,000 tonnes per annum,” Mr Sadler said. “We also recognise this unlocks private sector investment across the region. Like any new market, the first there gets the biggest advantage.
“55,000 jobs would be protected, and the industrial charge to Net Zero we believe will create 43,000 new jobs. If we look at the size of the prize in the Humber, that’s 20,000 new jobs.
“It is a fantastic opportunity to meet climate change objectives, to be a forerunner of decarbonisation, while positioning the 海角视频 at the forefront of the green products market.”
For Darren Cunningham, general manager of Phillips 66 Humber Refinery, that could mean EV battery building.
The South Killingholme facility has emerged as one of few global producers of high grade graphite coke, used as a core part of a lithium ion battery.
“As the vehicle fleet electrifies, there is a lot of interest in developing a gigafactory in the 海角视频 or Europe,” Mr Cunningham said. “We are one of a few raw materials manufacturers here, and we are having conversations about how we can champion that supply chain.
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“The Humber would be a great place to develop a gigafactory. There is plenty of land, a great workforce and the ports, it is a great opportunity for our region.”
Describing the Equinor-led Zero Carbon Humber scheme as a “very exciting development”, with the South Bank refining cluster to tap into it with a joint venture separate strand and bid - Zero Humber, with Vitol - Mr Cunningham told how low carbon liquid fuels would also remain essential, with demand in 2050 seen as the same as 2015, undermining the importance of keeping the “massive scale multi-billion pound machine” going.
Phillips 66 produces 30 million litres a day of fuel, enough to keep half a million vehicles on the road, exporting globally while covering 20 per cent of the 海角视频 demand. It was this week described as the poster child of how future refineries need to operate by the 海角视频 Petroleum Industry Association.
While collecting carbon at the back end would make a clear contribution, the feed in is also being explored, with Phillips 66 the industrial user in the green hydrogen Gigastack project, where offshore wind provides the power behind the electrolysis in a tie-up with Sheffield’s ITM Power.
“If it goes ahead it is the world’s largest application of green hydrogen - 100MW, one third of our hydrogen requirement,” Mr Cunningham said. “An oil refinery uses a lot of hydrogen, we use it to remove impurities, to manufacture and we also use a lot of methane for heat - hydrogen could be used to substitute some of that.
“It could be used in the expansion of our battery coke, and the good thing about green hydrogen is it can be quickly deployed.”
He wants to see an incentive like that set out for offshore wind to bring the technology forward at scale, while encouraging cost reduction, with early feedback from Gigastack’s initial feasibility phase very positive.
“The Humber region has unique advantages and really should be the first logical place where we try and demonstrate these concepts,” he said. “We have to make sure we develop these concepts and move on the journey, invest in the Humber and create jobs.”
Orsted provides the initial oomph, with Hornsea Two offshore wind farm - now in construction - to be able to divert power from the grid to infrastructure developed by the onshore substation at North Killingholme, conveniently neighbouring the refineries.
Buoyed by the Prime Minister’s “large commitment to much more offshore wind in the future and the Humber standing to benefit from all of that development and growth,” Emma Toulson, lead stakeholder advisor for the world leader in the sector, said: “Direct electrification is a great way to decarbonise, but there are some sectors which are much more difficult to decarbonise by electrification.
“We can use electricity produced by offshore wind from us, a process of electrolysis and from that produce pure renewable hydrogen, and that can go into a number of different pathways, to industry, replace hydrogen from fossil fuels and also be used for heavy transport.”
Ms Toulson told how the plummeting cost of offshore wind meant the surplus generated could fix wider Net Zero challenges. “Wind in the 海角视频 is only going to grow, and now we are looking at how we can use wind in different ways to meet Net Zero ambition.
“I believe renewable hydrogen will play a massive part in the solution.”
Melanie Onn, former Grimsby MP and now deputy chief executive of trade body Renewable海角视频, chaired the session, and said the pace of development had to be appreciated.
“It is important people grasp how quickly things are changing.” she said. “Collaboration between businesses is important because we see the energy transition and the fuels of the future coming out of collaborative working.”