East Midlands Hydrogen - a partnership between D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership, Cadent, Uniper, Toyota, Midlands Engine and East Midlands Freeport - is to be launched tomorrow (Friday 22 September.) It is set to connect supply and demand through a new 100% hydrogen pipeline, bringing massive economic and environmental benefits to the region.
A PwC report set for publication next month estimates that development of a full hydrogen supply chain in the East Midlands would contribute £10 billion GVA and 110,000 jobs created or retained by 2050. It’s estimated that carbon savings from the cluster of 70 industrial sites across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire could be as much as 1.9 million tonnes per year, the equivalent of gas-related carbon emissions from 860,000 homes.
EMA is a key supporter of this partnership as interest in the use of hydrogen for the aviation sector continues to grow, and estimates that it could see a demand for around 700,000 litres of liquid hydrogen a day by 2050 – the year the global aviation industry has set to reach net zero.
As the UK’s largest dedicated air cargo hub moving more than 400,000 tonnes of goods a year, a popular passenger airport attracting 4.5m passengers a year, and an employment site of more than 8,000 workers, EMA is committed to continuing to drive economic value for the region and wider UK, while also delivering against its target of net zero carbon operations by 2038.
The launch of East Midlands Hydrogen is to take place tomorrow at Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd in Burnaston, Derby, when plans to realise the hydrogen opportunity in the region will be showcased to a wide range of stakeholders.
Adam Freeman, Head of ESG and Environment Strategy at EMA, who will speak at the event, says: “The UK aviation industry has set out a really bold commitment, the first in the world to commit to net zero by 2050. As part of that we see a number of measures which help to remove carbon from flying. We can see the role of hydrogen to decarbonise flight through hybrid electric, hydrogen propulsion and direct combustion of hydrogen.
“Through the work we did with the Fly Zero project, we see a demand in about 2050 of up to 700,000 litres of liquid hydrogen a day here at EMA.”