Amazing PhD Opportunity!We are excited to offer a fully funded PhD position in Hydrogen Storage in Liquid Organic Carriers (LOHC), conducted at the University of Bath in collaboration with UK-HyRES.
This project will focus on innovative solutions for hydrogen storage, a critical component of the emerging hydrogen economy. How can LOHCs help us build a more sustainable energy system and how do we ensure that hydrogen storage technology supports the transition to net zero?You will be mentored by Dr Alfred Hill and Dr Simon Freakley,
contributing to the development of cutting-edge hydrogen technologies that will play a key role in the global energy transition.For further details and to apply, please see: https://bit.ly/3ZvEuZy
Ballard Power Systems has revealed plans to cut jobs, streamline operations and potentially scrap its Chinese joint venture to save over 30% in spending as it prepares to weather a slow-down in the hydrogen market. The Canadian fuel cell firm said the measures were necessary to reduce corporate spending and maintain balance sheet strength as the adoption of hydrogen technology continues to face delays.Germany plans to hold an exclusive AUD $660m ($444m) auction for green hydrogen imports into Australia its H2Global funding mechanism.bp and Iberdrola have reached a final investment decision (FID) on a 25MW green hydrogen project at the British oil major’s Castellón refinery in Spain, seemingly rolling back on original plans to build an initial 200MW.Green hydrogen is unlikely to reach cost parity with fossil fuels soon, and those benefiting from oil and gas profits will need to bear a significant portion of the financial burden.That’s according to Kim Hedegaard, CEO of Power-to-X at Topsoe, who told H2 View that the discussion must move beyond blaming the so-called green premium for delaying green hydrogen off take.
Thought piece by Professor Paul Dodds,
Professor of Energy Systems, UCL Energy Institute.
There has been much interest in the climate and energy policies of the new Labour Government since it was elected on 4 July. Prior to the election, the Conservative and Labour parties agreed on a number of areas including building new nuclear power stations, offshore wind and the importance of hydrogen.
A key difference, though, was their vision for the speed of low-carbon transition. In September 2023, the Conservative Government slowed down the transition by, for example, delaying the date at which petrol and diesel cars would be phased out to 2035. Labour, in contrast, pledged to decarbonise the electricity system by 2030 and bring the phase-out date for cars back to 2030.
Labour’s Clean Energy Superpower Mission focuses on cutting energy bills and creating jobs. It includes a pledge to fund green hydrogen manufacturing with up to £500m over the new parliament. A National Wealth Fund is being created whose investments could include hydrogen, and GB Energy will be an owner and investor whose tasks will include project development, project investment and supply chains. The GB Energy Bill is scheduled to have its Second Reading in Parliament in September 2024 so it is clearly a priority.
Hydrogen is not a short-term priority for the new Government
The principal short-term priority for the new government appears to be clean power by 2030. The next offshore wind auction has already been increased to £1.5bn. There is a question about whether the Government will commit to a regular pipeline of support in the longer term that gives investors the confidence to invest in new UK factories to deliver wind turbines and other technologies.
Labour’s longer-term thoughts on net zero focus on nature, clean air, decarbonising transport and leveraging finance. It’s not clear that there will be a substantial focus on hydrogen over this parliament. Ed Miliband is the new Secretary of State for DESNZ, having held the same position for DECC in 2008–2010 when that Government was strongly in favour of electrification to reduce emissions. Sarah Jones is the new Minister of State with responsibility for hydrogen. The Prime Minister and particularly the new Chancellor of the Exchequer were very positive about hydrogen investments prior to the election.
Big questions remain about the strategy to decarbonise heat
While Labour is committed to using heat pumps to decarbonise heating in homes, Ed Miliband said prior to the election that a Labour Government would not force homeowners to rip out their gas boilers. Yet last year Lord Callanan, the previous Minister of State with responsibility for hydrogen, said “the idea that we could produce enough hydrogen at reasonable cost to displace mains gas is pretty much impossible”. So what is the strategy?
The Climate Change Committee (CCC) warned last summer that policymakers need to stop “avoiding big, impactful decisions and actions” to decarbonise heat. The decision on whether to use hydrogen for heating due in 2026 but the village pilot studies were abandoned by the previous government. The new Government will have come to a decision on its next steps for this challenging area sooner rather than later.
The Hydrogen Innovation Showcase was a two-day event, at the Pendulum Hotel and Conference Centre in Manchester 2-3 July. Welcoming industry leaders, innovators, and researchers to explore ground-breaking projects across the UK hydrogen landscape, offering a fantastic opportunity for the industry to meet and discuss the future of hydrogen.
Co-hosts included HI-ACT, UK-HyRES, Innovate UK, and the Hydrogen Innovation Initiative. Focussing on projects across the UK hydrogen landscape, it included:
Exploring the innovation taking place across the hydrogen landscape
Learning about the interesting and unique projects from exhibitors and speakers
Understanding more about the key research developments and funding opportunities underpinning the hydrogen economy
Enabling and accelerating meaningful partnerships and collaborations with others in the space
Marcus Walls-Bruck, Head of Hydrogen Technologies at the National Composites Centre, presented at the Hydrogen Innovation Showcase, highlighting the innovative projects taking place across the UK in hydrogen, featuring key players in the hydrogen landscape.
From HI-ACT, we were delighted to have our Co-Investigator Professor Tapas Mallick present on the first year of HI-ACT research outputs as well as taking part in the panel session on ‘where are we and where are we going’. The HI-ACT team were pleased to showcase how we are actively helping to accelerate research into systems integration of hydrogen for the future net-zero energy transition.
From UK-HyRES, we were pleased to have our team actively engaged throughout the event. We played a vital role in showcasing the latest advancements in hydrogen technology and contributed to key discussions, furthering our commitment to driving innovation within the hydrogen sector.
The event also included a talk by Toyota Motor Manufacturing UK, Technical Director on Hydrogen’s role in decarbonisation, discussing their longevity of the market, and included work on Hydrogen fuel cells they have been undertaking for the last 30 years. It is safe to say The Hydrogen Innovation Showcase was a huge success with many insightful talks, rapid-fire pitches from innovative SMEs, engrossing panel discussions and last but by no means least our hubs’ research.
Thank you to all who contributed to this successful event, it was an inspiring experience, and wonderful to see such valuable positivity in the room.
Professor Rachael Rothman, Co-Director at UK-HyRES, together with Dr Alex Newman and Dr Josh Kassongo, represented both the UK-HyRES cross-cutting Environmental theme (CT2) and the South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre (SYSC) at the Hydrogen Innovation Showcase held on the 2nd and 3rd July 2024 in the city of Manchester, UK.
The formal scientific proceedings started with a Research and Innovation Exhibition where in-person delegates could meander along various posters on display aimed to capture targeted research activities across the technical and cross-cutting themes of UK-HyRES.
A section highlight of the Showcase was the 3-Minute Rapid Fire Pitch Presentations where various key players along the hydrogen value chain presented comprehensive ongoing innovative solutions in their focus areas. This segment of the Showcase captured the essence, the ‘pulse’ as it were, of the hydrogen-based economy by presenting pertinent strategies and approaches currently deployed in the UK and internationally in response to critical research questions on hydrogen production and utilisation.
The Keynote address entitled “Hydrogen’s Role in Decarbonisation” by Mairi Gordon from Toyota Motor Manufacturing UK presented the global progressive work undertaken to reduce industrial emissions at Toyota. Mairi acknowledged the crucial enabling role assumed by the government to stimulate the decarbonisation effort. On the debate of hydrogen vehicles Vs electric vehicles, Mairi advocated the need for an array of mobility powertrains fuelled by various energy sources, including hydrogen. The mindset driving research at Toyota is to provide consumers with the power of choice among suitable alternatives, assured Mairi.
There were three parallel sessions, namely Make It, Move It, and Use It, each tackling specific known issues regarding production, storage and distribution and end use of hydrogen. In the Use It Parallel session, Prof Rothman presented South Yorkshire’s (SY) illustrious heritage of foundation industries such as steelworks, cement and ceramics. Preliminary work identified nodes of CO2 emissions and potential industrial hydrogen demand in SY with corresponding potential hydrogen production via either electrolysis or gasification.
Additionally, work carried out in the context of the SY energy system established that ambitions for green hydrogen production may be hampered by rising electricity costs generated from overloading. To address this challenge, various electrolyser configurations need to be evaluated for geographical suitability and economic fitness. Also, engagement between academia and the SY industry is essential to guide the formulation of region-specific decarbonisation solutions hinged on hydrogen production and integration into industrial processes. Prof Rothman reaffirmed the significant potential for hydrogen in the industrial deffossilisation in Sheffield and in SY at large.
The Showcase ended on a high note with Prof Tim Mays, UK-HyRES Hub Director, who thanked the various teams working on the basic research underpinning the delivery of the UK Hydrogen Strategy. While tactfully cautioning against an “evangelistic” attitude when engaging in novel research, Prof Mays underscored the need for tempered expectations and an open mind in exploring the boundaries of ground-breaking hydrogen research.
We’re thrilled to announce that UK-HyRES has been named a finalist at EntreConf and EntreConf Awards in both the Sustainability and Science categories!
It’s a tremendous honor to receive this recognition, and we can’t wait for the awards ceremony this September.
Stay tuned for updates as we get closer to the big day!
The University of Bath seeks an expert in hydrogen research. If you have a PhD or equivalent experience, a strong publication record, and are recognised in your field, this could be your next career move! Collaborate with top facilities and networks, including IAAPS, to advance your research.
Deadline for applications is the 4th of August!!!
Click here to Learn more and apply: https://bit.ly/4bBS4Na
The Hydrogen Innovation Showcase, co-hosted by Innovate UK, HI-ACT, and the Hydrogen Innovation Initiative, took place at the Pendulum Hotel & Conference Centre in Manchester on July 2-3.
Over the course of these two days, the event welcomed industry leaders, innovators, and researchers who explored groundbreaking projects within the UK’s hydrogen landscape. Attendees were treated to a range of engaging activities, including a fascinating plenary session by Toyota Motor Manufacturing UK, a series of insightful talks, rapid-fire pitches from innovative SMEs, and engrossing panel discussions. Additionally, the event highlighted significant research from various hubs.
The showcase provided a valuable opportunity for networking, allowing participants to connect with new faces and reconnect with familiar ones. The palpable enthusiasm in the room underscored the promising future of hydrogen technology.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to all contributors, attendees, and organizers for making this event a resounding success. It was truly an inspiring experience for everyone involved.
The Supergen Energy Networks Impact Hub, together with the Hydrogen Integration for Accelerated Energy Transitions Hub (HI-ACT) and the UK Hub for Research Challenges in Hydrogen and Alternative Liquid Fuels (UK-HyRES), is planning to organise a set of in-person and online activities for ECRs in the areas of net zero energy transitions, to better support your development.
Over the following anonymous survey, we have devised a few questions to help us ascertain the suitability of these activities for your needs and to identify the most popular ones if possible. Your responses will help us devise/revise our future events. We are grateful for your valuable input!
Please access our survey via https://forms.office.com/e/qcsf4uQwwf (expiry date: 31/07/2024).
Everyone at UK-HyRES is incredibly proud to announce that Prof John Irvine has been named on the King’s Birthday Honours List. Prof Irvine has been awarded a CBE for services to the green economy, for his leading contributions and research.
On achieving this award, Prof Irvine said:
“I was honoured to receive a CBE in the King’s Birthday Honours List this year for my contribution to the Green Economy. The research we carry out as part of the HyRES Hub is pivotal in our pursuit of a green economy, providing a network of experts to tackle the challenges we face in reaching Net Zero. I am proud to have been recognised as a leader in my field. It gives the hub significant impetus to deliver maximum impact.
This recognition underscores the critical work being done at UK-HyRES and strengthens our resolve to drive forward innovative solutions for a sustainable future”.
Congratulations, Prof Irvine!
