Ellesmere Port shocked by hydrogen power plan, MP says

Concerns have been raised over plans to put a town forward for a hydrogen fuel pilot without support from the local council or MP.

Gas company Cadent has applied for Ellesmere Port to be considered for the government's Hydrogen Town pilot to see how suitable the element is for homes.

Ellesmere Port and Neston MP Justin Madders said residents were concerned about the impact of the scheme.

Cadent said the initiative was at an early stage.

Whitby, an area of the town, has already been selected to potentially be included in a scheme to become a Hydrogen Village to test the suitability of the gas for domestic homes.

Some Whitby residents have raised concerns about their natural gas being turned off and replaced with pure hydrogen from 2025, with some saying they felt like "lab rats".

Either Whitby or Redcar on Teesside will be named as the trial location later in 2023.

Mr Madders and Louise Gittins, the leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council, have written to Business Secretary Grant Shapps about the proposed town scheme for Ellesmere Port and what they described as "ongoing difficulties" with Cadent over the Whitby proposals.

They said questions to the firm had been left unanswered, leaving constituents in "a lot of doubt".

"In conversations we have had with Cadent's representatives, the fact that people have genuine concerns about the lack of information have been largely overlooked by them," they said.

They added it was a "surprise to learn" that Cadent had submitted the whole of Ellesmere Port to be considered for the pilot and were "deeply concerned" that the firm made the submission without their support.

Marc Clarke, head of hydrogen consumer at Cadent, said the Hydrogen Town pilot was "at the very early stages".

"For the proposed Hydrogen Village trial, we have been talking with local residents in many ways and have heard their concerns and have tried to answer as many questions as we can," he said.

"However, we know there are questions that Cadent is not able to answer.

"Some of these answers may not be known for a while and are reliant on decisions or research from the government or other organisations."

"We ask residents to provide us with feedback and this will be submitted as part of our evidence to the government."

A government representative said no trials would take place where there was not strong local support.

"In their applications, gas network operators will need to demonstrate evidence of substantial local support for the trial, validated by an independent external source such as a local council," they said.

"This will be a critical factor in the final selection of the trial location, with the rights of consumers engaged in the projects to be protected before, during and after."

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