Energy & Low Carbon

A New Industrial Future

Tees Valley is the leading export-focused and energy-intensive industrial cluster in the UK. The region’s concentration of industry along the coastline makes us ideally positioned to deliver a low-carbon, industrial future and become a national strategic asset.

The emissions reduction required by 2050 under the Climate Change Act means that energy will need to be supplied almost entirely carbon free and, in order to achieve this, it is vital to have alternatives to carbon-based fuels, not just in industry but in our buildings, heating and transportation.

Geographically Suited

Tees Valley presents a “no regrets” ready-made and cost-effective cluster which can achieve long-term decarbonisation at affordable cost. Not only is it geographically and industrially suited for large-scale decarbonisation, it is also home to the South Tees Development Corporation, the UK’s biggest development opportunity. The 4,500-acre site offers prime, developable land with deep water port access, close to the North Sea and as been dubbed Europe’s most exciting project.

Offshore Wind

The Tees Valley is ideally positioned for servicing the North Sea and offshore industries.

The region’s ambitions for this sector are reflected in the investment in the area. Teesworks, at the heart of the UK’s biggest and first operational Freeport, is undergoing huge redevelopment, including a new 1km quay, currently in construction. The quay will specifically service the offshore energy sector, providing instant access to more than 500 acres of manufacturing storage and mobilisation facilities and the world’s biggest offshore wind development, Dogger Bank.

Global manufacturer SeAH Wind has already started construction on its £400million monopile manufacturing facility and, with millions of pounds of government backing, it is expected the site will house up to three manufacturers to support the development of the next generation of offshore wind projects.

Click here for more information on offshore wind →

Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage

Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage is widely acknowledged as the only viable technology able to reduce industrial CO2 and achieve cost-effective decarbonisation across industry sectors. Tees Valley is already leading the way with the Tees Valley Cluster, a partnership of major global companies located in Tees Valley with a shared vision; to be the go-to location for future clean industrial growth and to create the UK’s first CCUS Industrial Zone.

With the Tees Valley Cluster, the area presents a ready-made, cost-effective solution to CCUS. The area has one of the highest concentrations of industry in the country and is close to North Sea carbon storage sites, meaning it is ideal for large-scale industrial decarbonisation.

Net Zero Teesside

The bp-led Net Zero Teesside is a Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) project that aims to decarbonise a cluster of carbon-intensive businesses by as early as 2030 and deliver the UK’s first zero-carbon industrial cluster. Working in partnership with local industry and with committed, world class partners, the Project plans to capture up to 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, the equivalent to the annual energy use of more than three million UK homes.

Set to be based at Teesworks Zero Teesside has been named as Government’s premier UK net zero project as part of the East Coast Cluster. It will play a significant role in local and national plans for regional development and in the UK’s low carbon industrial strategy. During construction, the Project could enable an annual gross benefit of up to £450million and support up to 5,500 direct jobs. The project can launch a green economy in the north east by supporting and safeguarding existing jobs, creating new jobs and driving growth in the local economy.

The CCUS network, once in place, will attract companies to the region that are seeking opportunities for either disposing of or utilising CO2.

Hydrogen Valley

Hydrogen will play a huge part in reaching the Paris Agreement targets by 2050. More readily storable than electricity, hydrogen can be used to heat buildings – commercial and domestic – by industry, reducing emissions from heat, and in transport for rail and heavy goods vehicles.

Tees Valley is home to the UK’s largest merchant hydrogen plant, operated by BOC Linde. This produces more than half of the UK’s commercially available hydrogen and is integrated with a large operational Hydrogen Transport & Storage system across Tees Valley. In addition, hydrogen is also produced at a large scale by CF Fertilisers and SABIC Petrochemicals as part of their ongoing Teesside operations.

The Tees Valley’s pioneering hydrogen sector is laying the foundations for the world’s first net zero industrial cluster, with A Vision for Hydrogen on the Tees Valley detailing how the area can become globally significant in the production, consumption and export of low carbon hydrogen.

Hydrogen Projects

Many hydrogen projects are in development for the region, with bp committed to Hygreen Teesside, a new large-scale green hydrogen production facility to the region. This will target 60MWe of green hydrogen production by 2025, potentially rising to 500Mwe by 2030 in line with demand. It has also revealed plans for H2Teesside, its major blue hydrogen production facility, which aims to be up and running within in the next five years, targeting 1GW of hydrogen production by 2030.

Other projects include H2NorthEast, developed by energy infrastructure firm Kellas Midstream, exploring the production of up to 1GW of low carbon blue hydrogen using gas already imported through the company’s CATS Terminal at Seal Sands. Northern Gas Networks has also tested hydrogen as a potential alternative to household gas supply in the region, which has also been designated the UK’s hydrogen vehicle testing hub.