Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 30
30
Accepted
Hydrogen trials cancellations adversely impact evidence collection for 2026 strategic decision.
Conclusion
In response to a question about how DESNZ had got so far with the trial at Redcar before realising that the supply of hydrogen needed was not available, DESNZ said that it was not solely reliant on the outcomes from the cancelled village trials, although the trials were “important”. It considered that “there were other sources and ways of getting the evidence that we needed in order to make decisions around the role of hydrogen”.55 We asked DESNZ what evidence it would use to make a decision and whether it still expected to be in a position to make a decision by 2026 given the delays and cancellations of hydrogen trials. DESNZ told us that it was still working towards being able to make a strategic decision in 2026. It explained that it was drawing on other sources of evidence, such as a trial to use hydrogen for home heating across a neighbourhood in Fife, alongside trials in other countries, such as the Netherlands and Germany. In addition, it explained that it was working with the Health and Safety Executive to develop an evidence base around the safety and appropriateness of hydrogen to inform its 2026 decision.56 Written evidence from Hydrogen UK, however, highlighted that the cancellation of the village trials had “adversely” affected the collection of data needed to evaluate hydrogen for heating.57 We noted that the neighbourhood trial was exclusively testing supply to the domestic market, but by 2026 there would not have been a live trial of hydrogen supply to non-domestic properties.58
Government Response Summary
The government states the recommendation is already implemented, detailing its ongoing research and development programme for hydrogen heating. This programme includes safety evidence, technical assessments, trial evidence, and energy systems modelling to inform a strategic decision in 2026.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
6.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 6.2 The government has a research and development programme to consider the costs, benefits, feasibility and safety of hydrogen heating. This includes: • Safety evidence, advice from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), drawing on evidence from research and testing projects being undertaken by the gas networks. • Specific departmental and gas network-led evidence projects to assess the technical conversion requirements for domestic and non-domestic gas installations and network infrastructure, • Evidence from trials, such as evidence provided through the planning for potential village trials in Redcar and Whitby, and live trials in Germany and the Netherlands. • Detailed energy systems modelling to assess the costs of different heat decarbonisation pathways.