24 projects across the country will benefit from the boost that will support the UK government’s commitment to reach net zero with the transition to clean, renewable energy alternatives.

Greg Hands, Energy and Climate Change Minister, said, “Driving forward energy storage technologies will be vital in our transition towards cheap, clean and secure renewable energy.

“It will allow us to extract the full benefit from our home-grown renewable energy sources, drive down costs and end our reliance on volatile and expensive fossil fuels. Through this competition we are making sure the country’s most innovative scientists and thinkers have our backing to make this ambition a reality.”

One of those 24 projects, focusing specifically on hydrogen, that will receive a chunk of the new capital is the Hydrilyte™ Refueller Prototype project, based in North Wales, UK.

Corre Energy, Carbon280, Worley, Element 2, Menter Môn and Energy Reform are all part of the effort that will showcase the ability to store hydrogen in Hydrilyte™ at a hydrogen hub, transport the Hydrilyte™ using standard fuel tankers and release the hydrogen into a refuelling system.

Under the first phase of the two-phase programme, the consortium is delivering a feasibility study for a Phase 2 prototype which, if successful, will be built between 2022 and 2024 at Holyhead in North Wales.

Brendan Bilton, founder and Chief Technology Officer at Element 2, said, “This limitation on volume practically limits the number of trucks that a truck stop can service to around eight to 10 HGVs per day.  With around 500,000 HGVs on UK roads, compressed hydrogen simply doesn’t offer the scalability as a ‘Hub to Station’ hydrogen carrier.

“We are excited to be part of this project because Hydrilyte™ has the potential to provide a safe and scalable alternative that will enable the UK to lead the world in the transition from diesel to hydrogen powered heavy vehicles by 2030.”