Refinery site for first low-carbon H-plant

BRITAIN’S first industrial-scale plant making low-carbon hydrogen will power the production of millions of litres of petrol, oil and aviation fuel at one of the UK’S biggest refineries.

The plant will be built at Cheshire’s Stanlow refinery which produces 16pc of the UK’S diesel and petrol, as well as almost 10bn litres of aviation fuel a year.

EET Fuels, which owns Stanlow, said the plant will convert gas into hydrogen, which it would then use to generate the heat and power needed to turn crude oil into fuels. It will also capture 600,000 tons of waste CO2 a year, which would be piped offshore for permanent storage in depleted gas reservoirs beneath the Celtic Sea.

Costs are estimated at about £1bn, with the Government backing the scheme through subsidies and tax breaks. Tony Fountain, managing partner of EET, said the aim was to build the largest low-carbon hydrogen plant in the UK – and construction could start later this year.

He added: “Scaling hydrogen capacity is essential to decarbonising heavy industries. This is an important step in our ambitious decarbonisation plan to transform our business and the North West. We appreciate the Government’s partnership which will contribute to protecting skilled jobs in the region and ensuring our industries remain competitive.”

The plant would use gases generated by the refinery to produce its hydrogen.

However, green campaigners have argued that all oil refineries are inherently polluting and the bulk of the emissions generated come from using their fuels, rather than making them.