The future of gas

Hundreds of gas-reliant businesses across our network are currently unable to electrify their processes, and hydrogen can offer industry a solution as they look to decarbonise.

East Coast Hydrogen plans to use the existing gas distribution and transmission networks, to connect planned hydrogen production and storage with industrial and large commercial users of gas, supporting industrial decarbonisation and securing jobs and investment for the region.

Our collaborative partnership with National Gas and Cadent has received £96 million from the regulator Ofgem, for three Front End Engineering Design (FEED) studies. This will determine the technical work needed to repurpose our pipelines to hydrogen and construct our infrastructure, to understand how a hydrogen network can be operational in time to meet the UK government’s net zero plans.

It will also help define further how a hydrogen network can support industry, drive economic growth and create jobs.

We believe in innovation, collaboration and a ‘whole systems’ approach when it comes to decarbonising networks and the UK’s diverse housing stock. 

Led by a dedicated specialist team based near Gateshead, NeRV is the UK’s first combined whole systems innovation research, development and demonstration facility, bringing together gas, electricity, communications and water.  

To hit the 2050 target, the UK needs to decarbonise around 20,000 properties a week for the next 20 years. 

There’s no one-size-fits all solution to this, so it remains a complex challenge for customers and policymakers alike. 

But by understanding the key interdependencies of different systems, housing types and customer personas, and through testing and research at scale, NeRV is delivering the data to provide answers. 

Our nine test homes, specially constructed to represent 9.4 million UK dwellings built between 1910 to 1990, provide a testbed for retrofit net zero technology, delivering clarity on energy, water and communications solutions best suited to different homes.  

These can then be scaled up to understand the impact on networks. 

Through key innovation projects, NeRV is also testing renewable energy production solutions including batteries and solar, and feasibility of on-site green hydrogen production. 

We’re committed to educating our region’s next generation of energy users on net zero and the role networks will play in the transition to a greener future. 

Our dedicated team delivers learning activities, run interactive experiments and discuss industry and STEM careers with pupils from primary years to school leavers seeking their first jobs, and adult learners too. 

As well as tailoring sessions to requirements, we’ve developed a bank of school and college resources about Net Zero, climate change, sustainability, and industry, which link to curriculum requirements. 

We’ve worked with over 25,000 young people since launching the Net Zero education programme in September 2023, and we’ve committed to reaching at least 60,000 in the next six years, as part of our GD3 business plan.