Exclusive:Ministers warned not to 'close the door' on hydrogen for heating amid 'disastrous rush' to rely on heat pumps
Union bosses have warned ruling out allowing hydrogen to be used for heating homes before a landmark trial in Fife concludes - stressing jobs could be put at risk.
UK government ministers have been urged not to “close the door” on harnessing hydrogen to heat homes before the outcome is known of a landmark pilot of the technology in Fife.
The appeal comes as SNP ministers are poised to finally table their long-delayed and watered-down heat in building proposals that could allow for hydrogen for heating to be used as an alternative to heat pumps and heat networks as part of efforts to reach net zero.
John Swinney has flirted with the idea of hydrogen being used for heating in contrast to the Scottish Government’s initial heat in buildings strategy, drawn up by former minister Patrick Harvie, which stated that hydrogen-ready boilers would be classed as “direct emissions heating systems” and not consistent with net zero aims.
Campaign groups and experts including the independent Climate Change Committee have warned that utilising hydrogen for heating would likely be a distraction from efforts to scale up the roll-out of heat pumps and networks as the primary method to decarbonise how buildings are heated.
Green hydrogen, the blend of the fuel that does not rely on fossil fuels, requires large amounts of energy to produce.
The Scottish Government's heat in buildings bill, which is expected to be published once MSPs return from summer recess, would need the green light from the UK government, if hydrogen was to play a role in heating.
The UK government is poised to launch a fresh consultation on whether hydrogen could be used for heating homes before making a judgment on the use of the technology.
A separate UK government consultation document on opening up hydrogen regulations for industrial and power uses, states that “the potential role of hydrogen in heating (homes) will be covered in a separate forthcoming consultation”.
But a trade union leader has called for the UK government judgment to be delayed until a pilot in Fife is concluded, to give a better understanding of the potential the technology could have on heating homes.
SGN is running the pilot for around 300 homes in Fife which will use green hydrogen for heat and will begin operating later this year until 2027.
The GMB union has warned that without allowing the pilot to conclude before deciding whether to exclude the technology for heating, UK ministers are putting an industry and jobs at risk.
The union believes harnessing hydrogen for heating could potentially ease the impact of the move to replace fossil fuel boilers with heat pumps and networks on the gas industry.
Louise Gilmour, GMB Scotland secretary, has claimed the risk of prematurely running down gas supply networks could be catastrophic for jobs and household bills and insisted the move is avoidable.
She said that a “verdict” on the technology should not be delivered “before hearing the case and ministers, like all of us, do not yet know the potential of hydrogen”.
Ms Gilmour added: “The trial in Fife could possibly help shape an energy strategy for generations to come but we will never know if ministers rush to reject hydrogen heating in homes.
“It makes no sense to effectively close the door on that potential before understanding its scale.
“It would be a needless and possibly disastrous rush to judgement chilling any hope of private investment and risking jobs and a practical, effective energy transition.”
In February, the First Minister branded the H100 pilot in Fife as a “shining example” of how technology could help deliver net zero and told The Scotsman that using hydrogen for heating was “a really exciting opportunity”.
Ms Gilmour added: “We have yet to be told just exactly how much the electrification of homes will cost householders and the National Grid and there is likely a good reason for that.
“The impact on the many industries and jobs underpinning our country’s reliance on gas, which will continue for decades, is another great unknown.
“The impact of the UK’s ill-judged rush to abandon oil and gas production is being seen every day as jobs, skills and contracts are lost to the UK while being exported around the world.
“We need a measured, effective and, above all, realistic energy strategy.
“To rush to net zero without a plan and whatever the cost is absolute folly because the cost in terms of jobs and the communities relying on them is unimaginable while the risk to our planet remains unchanged.”
A spokesperson for the UK’s government’s Depertment of Energy Security and Net Zero said: "We have been engaging with stakeholders on this issue. We are continuing that engagement and will publish the consultation in due course."
The Scottish Governments has been contacted for comment.
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