Source · Select Committees · Scottish Affairs Committee
Recommendation 3
3
Accepted in Part
Paragraph: 27
The UK and Scottish Governments arrived at their respective 10GW and 5GW by 2030 low...
Recommendation
The UK and Scottish Governments arrived at their respective 10GW and 5GW by 2030 low carbon hydrogen production targets independently of each other, and we are unclear how the two targets align and whether either is achievable. Clarity on this is vitally important given the targets must be reached in just seven years’ time. We recommend that the UK and Scottish Governments, in response to this report, explain how they arrived at their respective 10GW and 5GW by 2030 low carbon hydrogen production targets and how the two targets align. Furthermore, the two Governments should provide us with a proposed timeline setting out key milestones on the road towards the respective targets to assist us and our successor committees in judging progress and evaluating the achievability of Scotland’s hydrogen production targets.
Government Response Summary
The government states that delivering up to 10GW of low carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030 is a stretching but deliverable ambition and that they will be developing a hydrogen production delivery roadmap to show how hydrogen production can be scaled up over the coming decade, to be published by the end of the year; however, they stopped short of agreeing to formally align targets or timelines with the Scottish Government.
Paragraph Reference:
27
Government Response
Accepted in Part
HM Government
Accepted in Part
Delivering up to 10GW of low carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030, subject to affordability and value for money, is a stretching but deliverable ambition for the UK, building on our strong track record of delivering cost reductions and large-scale deployment of offshore wind and solar power. This ambition is based on our detailed understanding of the pipeline of projects that could come forwards during the 2020s, and is considerate of the challenges, constraints and costs involved in delivering this. As recommended by the Independent Review of Net Zero, we will be developing a hydrogen production delivery roadmap to show how hydrogen production can be scaled up over the coming decade, to be published by the end of the year. Projects in Scotland have always been considered within the UK-wide production ambition, including both the UK’s 5GW ambition (which was set in the 10 Point Plan in 2020) and the increased 10GW ambition (which was announced in the Energy Security Strategy in 2022). The decision to increase the UK’s ambition to 10GW in 2022 reflected the Government’s confidence in the pipeline of hydrogen production projects across the UK and complemented the parallel announcements in the Energy Security Strategy in the North Sea, renewables and nuclear sectors. The increased ambition in 2022 did not represent a change in accounting for contributions from individual nations. The UK recognises the Scottish Government’s decision to set its own ambition for 5GW of hydrogen production in Scotland, but this does not have a formal relationship to the 10GW UK-wide ambition. Projects in Scotland have the potential to play a significant role in the UK’s rapidly developing hydrogen economy.