UK’s grid congestion is causing an annual loss of £3.5 billion.
That’s according to Policy Exchange, which in collaboration with LCP Delta uncovers the volume of wasted wind generation in 2022, equal to more than 118,000 tonnes of green hydrogen.
This figure is expected to rise to 455,000 tonnes by 2029, with congestion payments alone costing over £350 million during 2021-22, analysts note.
The report recommends government intervention, promoting the adoption of electrolysers in heavily curtailed areas.
The envisioned benefits include displacing grey hydrogen consumption, decarbonising steel manufacturing, meeting the national sustainable aviation fuel target, or contributing to the electrolyser production capacity target for 2030.
Angus MacNeil MP, Chair of the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee and the report’s Foreword author – commented: “We have every opportunity to make more efficient use of our existing energy infrastructure and leverage wasted renewable energy into clean hydrogen.
“Their proposal to work with industry could achieve major system savings and deliver major investments into hydrogen production capacity throughout northern Scotland and elsewhere in the UK. The potential output is massive, worth two-thirds of our electrolysis target for 2030.”
