Cheshire salt caverns could become hydrogen store

Uniper, which operates a natural gas storage facility and other gas assets in the UK, is partnering with British Salt to explore the potential for a hydrogens store near Warmingham in Cheshire. The Salinae project would see salt extracted from the site, where British Salt owns the mineral rights and has existing operations, to leave a salt cavern where hydrogen could be stored. John Rixham, Uniper head of hydrogen storage development for the UK, said: “Cheshire has the perfect geology to safely store large volumes of hydrogen and the Salinae Hydrogen Storage project could contribute to developing this innovative technology.”

The two companies will develop designs for the drilling of the first two wells to demonstrate the site’s suitability. But Uniper said that in advance of a hydrogen market existing in the UK, and as a precursor to a competitive market framework, the Salinae project development will require the government “to develop a bespoke business model to bring forward this first of a kind technology”.

Meanwhile, the ‘front end engineering design’ (FEED) project team for the Eastern phase of a hydrogen network has taken shape. The two-year FEED for Project Union East Coast will include WSP, Kent, Murphy, Aecom and National Gas’s hydrogen teams.

Project Union, led by National Gas, will convert existing natural gas pipeline infrastructure and build new pipelines, where needed, to transport 100 per cent hydrogen. Project Union East Coast will link industrial clusters in the Humber and Teesside regions, while the 1500 mile initiative will eventually link to Grangemouth Southampton, the North West and South Wales. It will also connect to strategic hydrogen production and storage sites and the Bacton interconnector, which could eventually connect the UK to European hydrogen networks.