Four Energy Giants Join Forces to Build Britain’s First Hydrogen Network in the Humber

A major new partnership between four of the UK’s biggest energy companies could see the Humber become the home of Britain’s first integrated hydrogen transport and storage network — and potentially reshape the region’s industrial future for decades to come.

What’s happening?

National Gas, Centrica, Equinor, and SSE Thermal have come together under the banner of Humber Hydrogen to submit a joint bid for around £500 million in government funding. The proposal is being put forward through the UK Government’s Hydrogen Transport and Storage Business Model process — a competitive scheme designed to decide where the country’s first regional hydrogen network will be built.

The network would consist of two core pieces of infrastructure: the Humber Hydrogen Pipeline, connecting hydrogen producers with industrial users across East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, and the Aldbrough Hydrogen Storage facility, which would develop new underground salt caverns for large-scale hydrogen storage.

Key locations in the network include Aldbrough, Easington, Saltend, Immingham, and Keadby.

Why the Humber?

The Humber is currently the UK’s most carbon-intensive industrial cluster, which makes it both a challenge and an opportunity. The region is home to a dense concentration of energy-intensive industries — heavy manufacturing, chemicals, steel, and power generation — many of which are difficult to electrify.

A hydrogen network would allow these sectors to switch from fossil fuels to hydrogen, cutting emissions while keeping the region’s industrial base intact. There’s also potential for new downstream industries, including ammonia production and sustainable aviation fuel manufacturing.

Several large-scale hydrogen production projects are already proposed in the area. The H2H Easington and H2H Saltend plants could produce up to 3GW of hydrogen combined. The Humber network would also be well-positioned to connect into a future national hydrogen transmission system being developed by National Gas.

What each partner brings

Each of the four companies contributes different expertise to the consortium. National Gas has deep experience in pipeline infrastructure and gas transmission. Centrica brings knowledge of energy storage, having operated the Aldbrough and Rough storage facilities. Equinor contributes large-scale hydrogen production experience, and SSE Thermal adds expertise in power generation and integrating hydrogen into industrial energy systems.

In fact, Centrica and National Gas made headlines last year when they successfully injected a 2% blend of green hydrogen into the national gas transmission system to power Brigg Power Station in North Lincolnshire — a UK first.

Competition and next steps

Humber Hydrogen isn’t the only bid in the running. Other proposals include Cadent’s planned 150km east coast network and HyNet’s 100km North West Hydrogen Pipeline. The government’s funding decision will determine which region gets to host the UK’s first hydrogen backbone.

The consortium and regional leaders are arguing that no other location can match the Humber’s combination of industrial demand, existing infrastructure, geological storage potential, and a skilled local workforce ready to support the transition.

The bigger picture

No country has yet built a nationwide hydrogen network, but many are investing heavily in the technology as part of their decarbonisation strategies. Hydrogen is particularly valuable where electrification or batteries aren’t practical — it can store and release large amounts of energy in a lightweight, transportable form.

If the Humber bid succeeds, it could serve as a prototype for how hydrogen networks are rolled out more widely across the UK, connecting industrial clusters and enabling a fundamentally different approach to powering heavy industry.

Sources: Centrica, SSE, National Gas, New Civil Engineer, Engineering & Technology Magazine