Redcar hydrogen trial should be put to vote - campaigners

Coatham is one of the areas of Redcar earmarked for the pilot

Residents in Redcar have called for a vote on a government trial for the first hydrogen village after the town was left as the only candidate.

A letter, signed by 565 people, has been sent to officials warning of a "lack of substantial local support".

The Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has confirmed plans would be scrapped in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, after protests.

The government said a trial would not go ahead without strong support.

Its proposed "hydrogen village trial" would heat about 2,000 homes, with the aim of testing the suitability of the gas for use in properties.

Cadent, the gas distribution network for the town of Whitby in Ellesmere Port, and Northern Gas Networks (NGN), which operates in Redcar, East Cleveland, each submitted rival bids.

On Tuesday, Cadent said the government was now "likely to progress the trial in Redcar" after DESNZ said its proposal for Cheshire was not preferred.

Unlike Ellesmere Port, homes and businesses in Redcar will not be able to opt out of the planned scheme in order to continue to have natural gas piped to their homes, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

They will, however, be given a choice between hydrogen and an electric alternative.

NGN said Redcar and Cleveland College would become the first college to use 100% hydrogen if the pilot went ahead

There are now calls for an evening of open debate with independent experts and an independently managed vote on whether the trial should go ahead in Teesside.

The Redcar and Cleveland Hydrogen Trial Group, which sent the letter to the government, has expressed concern that political support for hydrogen home heating is waning.

"As residents, we are extremely concerned that there is a lack of independent advice and evidence available to us," the letter said.

It also highlighted studies suggesting that hydrogen "will play an extremely limited role in home heating in a net-zero world".

"We call for independent experts to advise local residents on the risks and benefits of taking part in this trial, and more widely to advise the government on whether the trial should go ahead," the letter added.

The hydrogen heating trials have been called off in Ellesmere Port

Conservative peer Lord Callanan tweeted that discussions with NGN about Redcar were "ongoing" and an announcement on the next steps would be made "shortly".

The proposed trial would begin in 2025 and last two years, with funding supplied by energy regulator Ofgem.

Alice Harrison, fossil fuels campaign leader at Global Witness, called the trials "disastrous".

"Hydrogen does have a role to play in decarbonising our industry but it would be a disaster as a source of home heating - it's explosive, expensive and it's much worse for the climate than alternatives like heat pumps," she said.

An NGN spokesperson said consultations in Redcar ran for more than 10 months, including an independent survey which found 95% of residents and landlords felt "positive or were neutral" about its proposal.

They said there had been a public meeting, conducted by an independent research company, and feedback was included in its proposal sent to the government

People with questions have been encouraged to speak to a team at its "Hydrogen Hub" in the town's high street.

"We entirely understand that there may be concerns about the move to hydrogen and electricity," a spokesperson added.

"The government is currently reviewing our project proposal before setting out next steps."

It previously said Redcar and Cleveland College would become the first college to use 100% hydrogen if the pilot went ahead.

Redcar's Conservative MP Jacob Young - previously chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Hydrogen - has given the Redcar Hydrogen Community his "full support" and said he would continue to work with NGN on the "potential for this project".

"The Hydrogen Village trial is vital to demonstrating hydrogen's potential for heating our homes," he wrote on Twitter.

"It's disappointing to see that this project and Cadent Gas Ltd have been the subjects of a campaign of mistruths in Whitby, which has led to undue concern amongst Whitby residents," he claimed.

A DESNZ spokesperson said the process of confirming the location for the first hydrogen village trial was "ongoing".