It comes in response to the UK Government’s call for proposals to design business models for hydrogen transport and storage infrastructure which closed on Tuesday (November 22).

Read more: UK Government open for consultation on hydrogen transport and storage business models

UKPIA has expressed concerns about plans to publish the business model in mid-2023, a move which the association has said could hold back vital investment decisions.

In a statement, it said, “Some low carbon hydrogen projects will need transport and storage facilities to be in place before final investment decisions are made. And it can take up to four years for the infrastructure to be built.”

It has said a coordinated approach is needed to align the development of transport and storage infrastructure with that of major hydrogen production facilities, which it says will ensure that hydrogen production has an associated demand that can be supplied.

Failure to do so, will risk production plants starting without customers, or transport and storage infrastructure standing idle due to lack of production infrastructure, UKPIA said.

Elizabeth de Jong, CEO of UKPIA, said, “The message from our members is clear – the timescale for publishing the business model is too long and risks delaying investment decisions for vital hydrogen projects. Government should consider how it can bring forward the publication of the business model to help bring these projects to fruition as quickly as possible.”

The UK Government in April (2022) unveiled its new energy security strategy which doubled its domestic low-carbon hydrogen production capacity from 5GW to 10GW by 2030, with half to be completely green.

Read more: UK Government unveils new energy security strategy doubling low-carbon hydrogen production to 10GW by 2030

Additionally, UKPIA has agreed with the UK Government that the business model for hydrogen and natural gas need to be compatible, saying there may be benefits in using natural gas infrastructure for hydrogen as the UK transitions to Net Zero.

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