Zero carbon boost for North East and Humber with new £52m funding

Zero carbon consortiums in the North East and the Humber have secured multi-million pound funding to deliver the UK’s first decarbonised industrial cluster.

Net Zero Teesside and partners have been awarded £52m to accelerate development of carbon capture, utilisation and storage and hydrogen infrastructure.

Net Zero Teesside and Zero Carbon Humber have teamed up to form the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP) to further the government’s ambition to be the first net zero country in the world.

Mayor Houchen commented: “The Net Zero Teesside project is the first of its kind anywhere in the world and is a key part of my plan for jobs, a plan that is delivering good-quality, well paid jobs for local people.

“Along with our research and innovation in hydrogen and the recently announced GE Renewables Energy facility also coming to Teesworks, our region is now the go to place for clean energy.

“This latest funding boost shows the confidence in, and commitment to, this project which will play a huge part in delivering the government’s ambitions for the UK to be the first net zero country in the world.”

Martin Cook, senior vice president for business development for National Grid Ventures, a partner in ZCH and NEP, added: “These awards represent an important milestone as we look to decarbonise the UK’s largest industrial heartland and build a globally competitive platform for economic growth in the North of England.

“Teesside and the Humber offer the potential for a unique mix of technologies and scale to achieve net zero, delivering significant value for money.

“National Grid will use our knowledge and experience of gas and electricity transmission infrastructure, and our capabilities developed on previous CCS projects, to deliver the infrastructure required to enable industry to achieve deep decarbonisation.”