Transport secretary Grant Shapps has announced plans to make the Tees Valley a major site of the innovation for hydrogen.
Speaking at the launch of the first hydrogen-powered train, Shapps said the development would kick start a masterplan, commissioned by the Department for Transport, to understand the feasibility of the hub and how it can accelerate the UK’s ambitions in hydrogen.
The masterplan, expected to be published in January, will pave the way for exploring how green hydrogen could power buses, HGV, rail, maritime and aviation transport across the UK.
The aim would then be for the region to become a global leader in industrial research on the subject of hydrogen as a fuel as well as an R&D hub for hydrogen transport more generally, attracting jobs and boosting the local economy in the process.
Through our £23m Hydrogen for Transport Programme, the plans announced also include £6.3m of funding for a green hydrogen refuelling station and 19 hydrogen-powered refuse vehicles in Glasgow, a world-first for the size of the fleet.
Shapps said he hoped it would give a “post-Covid boost” to local economies through the creation of green jobs while also decarbonising the transport network.
