Tees Valley Combined Authority has announced £7m in UK government funding for hydrogen projects aiming to support skilled jobs and decarbonise the transport network in the northeast.
The funding has been awarded to fuel distributer Exolum to build a publicly accessible green hydrogen refuelling station near Middlesbrough, initially serving at least 25 new zero-emission heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) making deliveries.
The hydrogen transport hub will reportedly be the first of its kind in the UK and will demonstrate how green hydrogen, which does not produce harmful emissions when used in a fuel cell, can be utilised in transport.
Tees Valley will use £300,000 of government funding to run a competition for Tees Valley colleges and training institutions to purchase hydrogen training equipment to upskill the local workforce.
The announcement follows the first winning project, led by ULEMCo and Element 2, which will develop hydrogen-powered airport ground-based support vehicles and create new hydrogen refuelling stations.
Exolum’s securement of funding completes the second round of government competition funding for the Tees Valley hydrogen transport hub following the first round, which awarded over £2.6m to deploy 21 hydrogen-powered vehicles.
READ MORE: How a hydrogen car industry could cut fuel costs and carbon emissions
The second competition invited ideas on how to overcome some of the challenges of scaling up hydrogen technology, making the region’s supply chain greener with hydrogen-fuelled vans and HGVs.
UK technology and decarbonisation minister Anthony Browne said: “It’s fantastic to see the Tees Valley continue to be a trailblazer in this vital technology to decarbonise heavier vehicles – leading the way for the wider rollout of green hydrogen.
“These three winning projects will not only support jobs and economic growth in the Tees Valley but will also help decarbonise our transport network.”
According to the government, the hydrogen transport hub is creating significant levels of industry interest, with a number of developers having announced their intentions to build large-scale green hydrogen production in the area, with demand from transport said to be a key factor.
Achievements and innovations in sustainable energy vehicles will be celebrated at the third annual CiTTi Awards, which will be held on 26 November 2024 at the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London. Nominations officially open in March 2024. Please visit www.cittiawards.co.uk to learn more about this unmissable event for the UK’s transportation sector.
