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The Outer Hebrides suffers from the highest fuel costs in the UK and yet is surrounded by the richest renewable energy resources in Europe. In August 2004, an energy audit was conducted on energy consumption in the Outer Hebrides, it identified that 34% of the population were spending more than 10% of their income on adequately heating their homes and with 97% of their energy being imported they are extremely vulnerable to global energy markets.
Exploitation of renewable energy for electrical transmission is presently constrained by the weak nature of the region’s connection to the national grid. Consequently, the concept of local energy generation for local use through micro-generation technologies is highly appropriate for the region. These circumstances represent a unique opportunity, harnessing the rich renewable and sustainable energy resources for hydrogen generation and demonstrating pre-commercial hydrogen technologies on a near-commercial basis.
The Comhairle is keen to hear from hydrogen fuel cell micro combined heat and power technology developers to establish CHP projects. The scale of the projects could vary from single domestic households, groups of domestic households, small public buildings (community halls, satellite Comhairle offices) to large public buildings (sports centres).
The Outer Hebrides offers many benefits to support this emerging technology:
- The Comhairle, the Hebridean Housing Partnership (the local housing association), the local enterprise companies and the community-owned townships provide a supportive environment (politically, financially and practically) for developers of low carbon technologies;
- The Hydrogen Laboratory at Lews Castle College (a college of the University of the Highlands and Islands Millennium Project) provides training to local engineers in the practicalities of hydrogen and fuel cell operation and is actively studying the integration of multiple micro-generation technologies (incorporating hydrogen and fuel cells) in distributed energy generation context.
We are interested to talk with:
- Hydrogen fuel cell micro-CHP developers
- System integrators
- Utilities
- Boiler manufacturers
- Electrolyser Suppliers
- Hydrogen storage & infrastructure partners
Hebridean Hydrogen Growth (H2growth)
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (the Western Isles Council) has a vision, the Hebridean Hydrogen Park, to establish a hydrogen economy within the Outer Hebrides. Over the past four years the Comhairle has committed funds amounting to £702,000 to developing Phase 1 and 2 of this vision. The Comhairle’s commitment to developing a local hydrogen economy has been further underlined in its Capital Programme for the period 2008-2012. This includes an allocation of a further £525,000 to develop the Hebridean Hydrogen Park into a third phase.
Preparation for Phase 3, to be known as H2growth, is now underway. H2growth will extend the demonstration of hydrogen applications into a wider range of domestic, commercial and industrial contexts. The purpose of the demonstration projects will be to promote the use of renewable hydrogen and encourage the early adoption of the emerging technologies within the Outer Hebrides. The hydrogen applications under consideration include the diversification of transport applications to include fuel cell vehicles for the domestic, tourism and industrial market as well as further internal combustion vehicles. Combined heat and power generation applications are also envisaged at both small and large scale, and in domestic and commercial contexts.
As well as creating a showcase for emerging hydrogen technologies, a key aim for H2growth is to demonstrate commercially viable hydrogen activities within the Outer Hebrides. Establishing local and export hydrogen markets will provide a valuable niche economic activity for the region and thus ensure the long-term development of the local hydrogen economy. |
