Under a new partnership agreement, Centrica is looking to use Ceres’ solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology to support onsite power generation for data centres, manufacturing, and other industrial sites in the UK and Europe.

However, the plan centres on initially running the fuel cells on natural gas. This comes after Ceres said it would prioritise natural gas-fuelled SOFCs for stationary power markets amid rising AI power demand.

In doing so, the pair claim they can help industries overcome grid connection delays for new industrial, commercial, and digital projects, which currently face 10 to 15-year waits in the UK.

Ceres will help Centrica roll out a “service-led” clean power model, assisting with project sourcing, installation, commissioning, remote monitoring, and predictive maintenance of any SOFC systems installed under the partnership.

Centrica Chief Executive, Chris O’Shea, said, “We see a real opportunity to support data centres, AI and industry with cleaner power at scale, while helping to ease pressure on the grid and boost economic growth.”

In addition to the fuel cell plans, the pair will look at using Ceres’ solid oxide electrolyser (SOEC) technology within Centrica’s nuclear reactor programme to produce pink hydrogen.

This would leverage Centrica’s advanced modular reactor, produced with US engineering company X-energy, which use high-temperature gas cooling to generate low-carbon electricity.

SOEC platforms can use waste heat from industrial processes to reduce electricity consumption and potentially reduce hydrogen production costs.

Centrica has been exploring the use of hydrogen across various energy segments. In 2025, alongside National Gas, it injected hydrogen produced through methane pyrolysis into the UK grid.

It also signed a £20bn ($26.7bn) 10-year natural gas deal with Equinor, which included an option to switch volumes to hydrogen.