Future Energy Networks

The characteristics of transmission pressure hydrogen and natural gas blends are not fully understood, including relative leakage behaviour. This project will test whether or not methane and hydrogen within a blend leak at the same rates, or whether due to its small size, hydrogen will leak at a ratio greater than its relative concentration, and whether it leaks where methane does not.

Understanding the leak behaviour of hydrogen in a natural gas blend will ensure we can operate a blended system safely, particularly in enclosed spaces, and will ensure that the carbon benefit of hydrogen enrichment is not lost through fugitive emissions. Also, as green hydrogen is currently significantly more expensive than natural gas, the shrinkage costs associated with hydrogen fugitive emissions could be considerable.

In 2022 a consortium of Urenco, EDF, the UK Atomic Energy Authority and Bristol University were awarded £7.7m worth of funding from the UK Government Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to develop a hydrogen storage solution, HyDUS. This solution could help to alleviate storage across GB. Unlike conventional storage approaches that rely on salt caverns or depleted fields, HYDUS uses modular metal hydride technology, enabling above ground deployment in geologically constrained areas.

This project will evaluate the feasibility and value of deploying HyDUS, a modular above-ground hydrogen storage system, as a means of storage across GB. The project will use WWU’s proposed HyLine hydrogen transmission corridor in Wales and South West England as a case study.

As the UK attempts to decarbonise residential heat to meet net zero by 2050, electric heat pumps along with heat networks are expected to play a key role. However, it is generally accepted that no one technology will be able to meet the needs of all households. If we are to deliver affordable low- carbon heating in the residential sector, we shall need as wide a range of technology options as possible to overcome the economic and technical challenges facing every customer.

Project GaIN (Gathering Insights) will explore alternatives to heat pumps and heat networks which can utilise the robust gas network and benefit from its current upgrade programme, supporting the aims of DESNZ’s decarbonisation of heat roadmap. The project will discover and assess additional technology options where alternative solutions might be more costly or difficult to deliver; this will include LAEP system benefits as well as localised CAPEX and OPEX costs.

This project will undertake testing on technology for distributed production of low carbon hydrogen from natural gas, biogas or other short chain hydrocarbons from waste. Which uses 90% less electricity than electrolysis of water and with 68% lower total energy costs.

The project will support early movers and convert gas from our network into a low carbon hydrogen solution. The compact and modular deployment of the technology enables hydrogen production systems to be installed directly at the energy user's site. These systems convert grid-supplied natural gas to hydrogen on demand, eliminating the need for additional infrastructure or on-site hydrogen storage, and leaves the rest of the network unaffected

This project will provide National Gas Transmission (NGT) with a clear technical understanding and strategy for the deployment of recompression solutions for Net Zero gas networks, including hydrogen blends, 100% hydrogen and Carbon Dioxide transmission.

The NIA Safe Venting & Recompression of Hydrogen innovation project explored the possibility of repurposing natural gas recompression units for hydrogen blends and 100% hydrogen and investigated new solutions for hydrogen pipeline recompression as part of routine maintenance activities.

This project will take further NGT’s knowledge of hydrogen recompression for different scales and applications on the NTS to reduce venting, and explore similar solutions for carbon dioxide pipelines.

The work will develop a pathway for the biomethane sector to monetise CO2 and identify the role the gas networks can play, reducing the long-term cost of gas decarbonisation.

Problem Digital exclusion remains a significant challenge across the UK, preventing many individuals—particularly those in vulnerable circumstances—from accessing critical information and services. As energy networks increasingly rely on digital channels for communication, those without internet access, digital skills, or confidence in using online tools face barriers in receiving important updates, such as emergency notifications and service disruptions. Current communication strategies, while effective for digitally engaged users, fail to reach those who are excluded due to economic, geographic, or personal barriers. This project seeks to bridge this gap by rethinking communication strategies to ensure all consumers, regardless of digital access, receive the information they need in a timely and accessible manner. Project Aims & Key Objectives Building upon the learnings from the previous Digital Exclusion project (NIA_CAD0088), this project aims to develop new, inclusive communication strategies that enhance engagement with digitally excluded individuals. The research project will determine what new approaches may be able to be adopted by energy networks to aid consumers who could otherwise be left vulnerable due to being digitally excluded. By adopting a human-centred approach, the project will:

• Understand how digitally excluded individuals currently access information and navigate daily life.
• Identify barriers in existing energy network communication strategies.
• Co-design and test new approaches that improve information delivery and engagement for those excluded from digital channels.
• Provide recommendations for scalable, long-term improvements in energy communication infrastructure. Project Outputs The project will deliver the following tangible outputs across the following stages: Stage 0 – Outreach
• Identification of priority demographics which are most affected by digital exclusion.
• Engagement with several digital inclusion hubs to identify and introduce stakeholders to the project.

Project Plan – Rethinking Communication for Digital Exclusion

Stage 1 - Insight

• A comprehensive research report detailing the lived experiences of digitally excluded individuals.
• Analysis of existing communication strategies used by energy networks, highlighting gaps and opportunities.

Stage 2 - Collaboration

• A series of co-design workshops engaging key stakeholders to generate and refine potential solutions.
• Prototype solutions tested in real-world settings, with iterative refinement based on feedback.

Stage 3 - Impact

• A strategic roadmap for scaling successful solutions across the energy sector.
• A final report consolidating research insights, prototype evaluations, and recommended implementation strategies. Expected Benefits
• For digitally excluded consumers: More effective, trusted, and accessible communication methods ensuring they receive vital energy-related information.
• For energy networks: Improved customer engagement, compliance with accessibility standards, and enhanced reputation for supporting vulnerable groups.
• For wider stakeholders: Development of scalable best practices that can be applied beyond the energy sector to improve communication with digitally excluded populations. TRL
• Start TRL: 2 (Technology concept formulated)
• End TRL: 5 (Technology validated in a relevant environment)

National gas pipeline systems rely heavily on protective coatings and cathodic protection to prevent corrosion and ensure long-term integrity. Coatings act as the primary barrier against environmental exposure, while cathodic protection—typically using sacrificial anodes or impressed current systems—supplements this by mitigating electrochemical reactions that cause metal degradation. The introduction of hydrogen into these pipelines, as part of decarbonization efforts, presents new challenges. Hydrogen can permeate coatings and accelerate corrosion processes, especially in the presence of certain microbes. Microbiologically induced corrosion (MIC), driven by bacteria such as sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB), can be exacerbated by hydrogen, which some microbes use as an energy source. This interaction may compromise both the coating and cathodic protection systems, necessitating advanced materials and monitoring strategies to maintain pipeline safety and performance in a hydrogen-integrated future.

Significant efforts are required to support the transition of our energy systems moving away from carbon-intensive fuels such as coal, diesel, petrol and gas, towards cleaner sources of power generation such as wind, solar, nuclear and hydrogen. There is a potential for hydrogen to play a hugely significant role in our energy system, the extent of which will be driven by a range of factors, including the ability to transport it to where it is needed. There have been recent positive decisions for hydrogen’s potential uses in blending, transportation, domestic heating and industry. To produce sufficient hydrogen to meet this potential need, it will be important to increase and diversify hydrogen production methods.

As nuclear is a reliable and consistent source of clean energy that is unaffected by external factors such as the weather, Northern Gas Networks and Wales and West Utilities would like to investigate the possible use of nuclear power as a method of delivering the future increased demand in hydrogen production. This project will explore the opportunity for hydrogen production from nuclear to support a net zero transition across the gas network.

Benefits of nuclear-enabled hydrogen (NEH) in the context of gas distribution networks (GDNs) will be explored, building on the established benefits of nuclear energy production.

The overall project outcome is that NGN, WWU, and other stakeholders are sufficiently informed to determine whether further investment and integration of nuclear-enabled hydrogen to transition plans are justified, and how a potential first project could take its next step to deployment through securing technology licences, sites, off takers and financing.