Cadent and Equinor are working together to assess what a hydrogen town conversion could look like in Lincolnshire. Converting the gas networks of a town from natural gas to fully low carbon hydrogen would drastically reduce the carbon emissions linked to home heating and could bring down overall emissions in the town by around a quarter.

Gas distribution network operator Cadent and energy company Equinor have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to develop the technical assessments and concepts for hydrogen production, storage, demand and distribution for heat, in line with Government targets to decarbonise domestic heating.

Often labelled the UK’s Energy Estuary, the Humber is the ideal location for such pilots due to the number of proposed low carbon hydrogen production projects, including Equinor’s H2H Saltend, the kick-starter for the wider Zero Carbon Humber scheme. As the gas network operator for Northern Lincolnshire, Cadent would assess which parts of its distribution infrastructure could be used to carry hydrogen instead of natural gas and develop any new infrastructure required.

Whilst aiming to initially explore both blending and 100 per cent hydrogen options in targeted pilots in the Humber region, the future ambition is to enable the decarbonisation of the gas grid across the North of England and East Midlands, including to major conurbations in South Yorkshire.

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