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Uniting the world to tackle climate change

The UK is hosted the 26th UN Climate Change Conference, COP26, in Glasgow in November 2021, bringing together leaders from across the world to tackle climate change. More than 190 world leaders were in attendance, together with tens of thousands of negotiators, government representatives, businesses and citizens for twelve days of talks on how to tackle climate change.

Here we look at how the Tees Valley is reaching its ambitions to achieve Net Zero and why it is now the go-to place to green and clean technologies of the future. We are also celebrating some of the brilliant businesses we have in the region who are working together to play their part in the Race to Zero.

For our Net Zero Strategy click here.

For our Net Zero Key Findings Document click here.

Ground Zero for Net Zero

The Tees Valley has huge ambitions – to become the world’s first Net Zero industrial cluster by 2040. Being home to one of the biggest industrial clusters in Europe, it is an obvious location to lead the UK’s net zero ambitions.

At the heart of Teesside’s industrial zone is Teesworks, the heart of the UK’s largest freeport – the Teesside Freeport – unrivalled in size, scale and opportunity it is a diverse, multi-sector setting, bringing together industry leaders to power Britain’s carbon capture capital.

There are a number of nationally significant and game-changing projects already earmarked for development across the Tees Valley, with many already under way creating the jobs for the future.

What the cluster offers

The Tees Valley presents a ready-made and cost-effective cluster which can achieve long-term decarbonisation at affordable cost. It is geographically and industrially suited for large-scale decarbonisation, it is also home to Teesworks, the UK’s largest Freeport, and Net Zero Teesside, the UK’s premier net zero project.

The region produces more than 50% of the UK’s hydrogen, and is home to the UK’s first Hydrogen Transport Hub, as well as two huge “blue” hydrogen project, bp’s H2Teesside and Kellas’ H2NorthEast, as well as Protium’s flagship green hydrogen project. It has the world’s largest biomass power plant, and the UK’s first Net Zero power plant.

Multimillon-pound investments in a new deep-water quay to service the offshore wind industry and a GE’s new wind turbine manufacturing facility, as well as investment to create the Teesworks Offshore Manufacturing Centre round off the region’s extensive cluster.

Net Zero Teesside

Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) is widely acknowledged as the only viable technology able to reduce industrial CO₂ emissions and achieve cost-effective decarbonisation across industry sectors.

The Tees Valley is home to Net Zero Teesside, the UK’s premier CCUS project. The consortium of some of the world’s largest oil companies led by bp, has partnered with Zero Carbon Humber, a similar project, to form the Northern Endurance Partnership. Net Zero Teesside will see the development of an offshore pipeline that will capture carbon dioxide emissions and transport them to be permanently stored deep underground.

The project will see 6MT of CO2 stored each year – equivalent to the annual energy use of 2million homes, and produce 1.8GW of zero-carbon power that will deliver hydrogen and scale and low cost.

Cleaner. Healthier. Safer.

With the Tees Valley firmly on the map as the UK’s premier Net Zero location comes opportunities for local people. Thousands of good-quality, well paid jobs are being created through these major investments, as well as thousands more safeguarded in the chemicals and processing industry, creating cleaner, healthier and safer communities for the generations to come.