Shell and Uniper to work on Killingholme blue hydrogen project

Uniper has signed an agreement with Shell to progress plans to produce blue hydrogen at Uniper’s Killingholme power station site in North Lincolnshire, UK.

The hydrogen produced could be used to decarbonise industry, transport and power throughout the Humber region.

The Humber Hub Blue Project includes plans for a blue hydrogen production facility with up to 720 MW, using gas reformation technology with carbon capture and storage (CCS).

The agreement follows an MoU signed by both companies in 2021 to explore accelerating the development of a hydrogen economy in Europe. Shell and Uniper will now jointly progress process design studies and site development activity to take the project to Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) by 2023.

The captured carbon would be fed through the proposed Zero Carbon Humber onshore pipeline, part of the East Coast Cluster, recently selected as one of two carbon capture and storage schemes to receive initial government support under the Government’s Cluster Sequencing Process.

The Humber Hub Blue Project recently passed the eligibility criteria for Phase-2 of the Government’s Cluster Sequencing Process and could be eligible for Government funding by May 2022. Phase-2 projects are expected to take final investment decisions from 2024 to then be operational from 2027.

Blue hydrogen production at Killingholme could capture around 1.6 million tonnes/year of carbon through CCS, contributing to the UK Government’s target to capture 10 million tonnes/year of carbon by 2030.

Shell plans to invest up to £25 billion in the UK energy system over the next decade, subject to Board approval, and more than 75% of this is for low and zero-carbon technology. Hydrogen and CCS will be key to these plans.

The UK set ambitious targets for hydrogen production in our British Energy Security Strategy and is investing £360 million in innovative energy technologies.