Cadent Gas has unveiled ambitious designs for a pioneering blue hydrogen pipeline in Northern England, despite encountering significant critiques from environmental groups.
Owned by a consortium headlined by investment bank Macquarie, Cadent has described this endeavour as "the first building block in a wider network" destined to spread across the º£½ÇÊÓƵ with hydrogen pipelines, as reported by .
Hot on the heels of Energy Secretary Ed Miliband's declaration of a £22bn government investment into carbon capture ventures, Cadent's announcement aligns with national infrastructure development momentum.
Initially covered by the Telegraph, this proposed 60-mile Hynet pipeline would extend underground from a hydrogen production facility near Ellesmere Port directly to Cheshire-based factories.
Touting itself as a º£½ÇÊÓƵ-first initiative, not only does it aim to link up with industrial customers like Tata Chemicals, Heineken, and Kraft Heinz, but also spark broader economic and environmental conversations.
In the wake of the reveal, organisations such as Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace have articulated their resistance, voicing concerns about blue hydrogen production's heavy reliance on fossil fuels potentially undermining clean energy ambitions.
Nevertheless, Cadent's Strategy Director Angela Needle conveyed to the Telegraph an optimistic vision, asserting that the project serves as a growth catalyst aligned with the government's 2030 targets for sustainable power.
Needle emphasised: "The project was formed to meet the demands of industry who seek to decarbonise as they deliver their products and continue to compete in the global economy."
"We need to support these essential industries in their efforts to ensure it is decarbonisation, not de-industrialisation that happens, and Hynet does this."
City AM has reached out to Cadent for a response.
