Projects

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.

Our project tackles a key barrier to expanding the UK’s net zero gas and power networks: how to engage the public inclusively effectively at scale reducing opposition and construction delays. Traditional methods are too slow and resource-intensive. In this phase we will identify consumer needs and explore novel AI-driven engagement solutions such as multilingual chatbots gamified education and sentiment analysis. Based on these insights we will define a roadmap for adopting or developing AI solutions in case unavailable off-the-shelf tailored to strategic large-scale engagement. In partnership with communities we aim to build trust transparency and public support for future infrastructure.

BioCapMap is a Strategic Innovation Fund Discovery project led by Cadent with Bohr Energy and Energy Systems Catapult. It will unlock the UK’s biomethane potential by developing a digital self-service tool that helps developers identify optimal gas network connection points being the first of kind to solve this gap in the connections planning process. By addressing outdated network data and inefficient connection processes the tool will streamline planning reduce costs and accelerate green gas deployment. BioCapMap supports rural growth and decarbonisation of the gas network by improving network visibility enabling smarter investment and enhancing coordination between developers and network operators.

This project seeks to demonstrate the reductions in weld residual stress assumptions that have been suggested by the Phase I Literature Review project. A test programme will be conducted to measure residual stress in pipelines indicative of those on the gas network and subject them to hydrostatic pressures as seen in the period correct commissioning tests. These residual stress results will be fed into a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) model to scale up to other sizes and grades representative of the gas network. Residual stress tests will also be performed on extracted ex-service pipework in order to validate the ‘fresh’ pipeline tests and the FEA modelling.

SGN Innovation is exploring how to support its operational colleagues in implementing tools and practices to mitigate emissions coming from pipeline operations. This work is driven by SGN’s GD3 Environmental Action Plan which sets a target to reduce operational carbon emissions by 46% relative to the 2019 baseline with a long-term target of net zero by 2045.

Whilst the Environmental Action Plan and the Network Asset Management Strategy articulate what SGN will invest in there be an “operational pathway” in how these ambitions translate into day-to-day operational decision-making as well as ensuring that the competing requirements on operational staff (efficiency vs emissions reduction for example) are addressed and appropriate guidance and prioritisation given.

This project creates a pragmatic approach to bridge the identified operational gap by establishing a decision framework and playbook for commissioning and decommissioning pipelines that embeds gas drawdown as a default activity with the potential if successful to expand to other areas of implementing the Environmental Action Plan. The aim is to enable SGN’s and other Network workforce to deliver consistent efficient emissions reductions across GD3.

The Innovation Highway phase 2 project will utilise AI and machine-learning to optimise the full innovation value chain. The platform will develop a minimum commercial product to help facilitate collaboration amongst networks and other sectors such as water companies so they can innovate together. AI-empowered algorithms will simplify the identification mapping assessment and selection of problems and ideas reducing manual processing time and enhancing effective decision making; this will support identifying and prioritising projects that will deliver the highest benefits. The platform will also help networks automate the development of cost benefit analysis.

This project investigates the risk of air ingress in medium to large commercial gas installations particularly in the context of hydrogen transition. It builds on previous domestic-focused research and aims to understand whether similar risks and mitigation strategies apply to commercial systems. The project includes technical and behavioural assessments experimental testing analytical modelling and the identification of mitigation measures.

The project will evaluate and deliver a plan that ensures our asset records are suitably complete to support the net zero transition.

The project will reduce uncertainty and risk and provide a more realistic proximation of asset data.

The HSE has indicated that it will be unable to support a network’s hydrogen safety case until they receive “a clear plan for checking unknown assets and how networks will ensure that only suitable materials are present in the network”. This includes our transmission pipelines.

Additionally for the marginal extra effort it would be prudent to ensure the completeness of our asset records is sufficient for us to either plan for the conversion to hydrogen or decommission sections as users switch to other heating technologies.

This project will investigate the effect of hydrogen exposure and conditioning on the failure behaviour of internal sharp defects in pipeline steels. The work builds on testing previously undertaken as part of the LTS Futures programme and NIA_SGN0070 where full-scale burst testing indicated that hydrogen exposure may influence the failure pressure associated with internal crack-like defects. However the available dataset remains limited and some results have shown inconsistencies suggesting that hydrogen conditioning and exposure history may significantly affect material response.

The project will undertake additional full-scale burst testing on vessels fabricated from representative pipeline material containing machined internal sharp defects. The vessels will be subjected to controlled hydrogen conditioning prior to burst testing to evaluate the effect of hydrogen diffusion and retention on fracture behaviour and failure pressure.

Complementary laboratory-scale mechanical testing and fractographic analysis will also be performed to characterise material properties and failure mechanisms. The results will support pipeline integrity assessments and the safe repurposing of the UK Local Transmission System (LTS) for hydrogen transport.

Green Gas Access will define tools to improve how green gas is managed across UK distribution networks supporting net-zero goals. With fossil fuels still expected to dominate the energy mix by 2050 we must ensure resilient supply and avoid capacity loss as we integrate decentralised sources like biomethane. The solution is to enable real-time network operation including dynamic supply modelling scenario planning and technology deployment. Key outcomes include: improved green gas injection control better asset use onboarding new suppliers efficiently and supporting the transition to low-carbon systems through coordinated green gas storage and power-to-gas operation.