Veolia advances hydrogen-economy programme in the UK

Resource management company Veolia is advancing its programme to create a hydrogen gas supply infrastructure and decarbonise the UK energy supply.

Claiming it to be the first of its type in the UK, Veolia is now managing electrolyser technology to derive hydrogen from water, powered by the low carbon electricity from its Energy Recovery Facilities (ERF). The hydrogen will be used in place of fossil fuels on the gas grid and for alternative zero-carbon fuel for commercial vehicles.

Read more: Veolia & Suez Reach Deal, Ending France's Longest Takeover Battle

For many years, methane gas has been used to heat homes and businesses and used in power stations to generate electricity. As a result, 85% of homes and 40% of the UK’s electricity supply comes from gas. When burning, methane still releases carbon into the atmosphere.

Veolia says its projects will accelerate the company's progress towards a net-zero future, replacing fossil fuels and realising the potential to decarbonise heat in industry, businesses and homes, and provide vehicle fuels.

By using electrolysis - a process using electricity to split water into its basic components of hydrogen and oxygen - it could create hydrogen that can be stored for future energy needs. This will cut carbon emissions. The process is a potential future solution for decarbonisation with water being the byproduct of hydrogen use.

The gas sector is testing ways to use hydrogen in the gas grid, and Veolia is already converting sites to use it in a range of onsite energy plants such as combined heat and power units, and industrial boiler plants.

Read more: Green hydrogen now cheaper to produce than grey - ICIS report

"Reducing carbon emissions and slowing environmental change is now a priority. By developing new ways of generating zero-carbon hydrogen we have the potential of covering the energy needs of our modern lives and stopping the climate-damaging impact of CO2. This represents a real step forward on the route to a net-zero world," said Donald Macphail, Chief Operating Officer, Treatment at Veolia Environmental Services UK

Veolia currently operates ten plants in the UK that take around 2.3 million tonnes of non-recyclable waste and transform this into electricity for over 400,000 homes. 

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