A company has chosen Dorset as the location for the UK's second series of underground storage caverns for hydrogen gas.
What does that mean, and why was Dorset chosen?
One of the three available options
To store gas as the company UK Oil and Gas (UKOG) is suggesting, you must first locate a thick underground layer of salt.
Engineers can drill straight down and inject water to dissolve that salt, resulting in the formation of large empty cavities.
The brine can then be pumped out, and gas can be injected into it for storage to be used when needed.
Dorset is one of only three regions on the UK mainland that possesses the geological conditions necessary to make this feasible.
The salt deposits the company is focusing on are located approximately 0.8 miles beneath the surface.
The exact location of the site has not yet been disclosed, but the company describes it as being situated to the west of Weymouth.
What could the potential consequences be?
The practice of storing gas underground is a common and established method, widely employed in the UK for the safe storage of natural gas.
However, the use of these caverns for hydrogen storage has been restricted, with only one facility in the UK, situated in Teesside in the north-east of England.
It has never been used for storing gas.
Regional environmental activists have expressed worries that this might cause difficulties.
"Hydrogen is highly prone to leakage, and the consequences of a leak can be hazardous," stated Ann Stewart, a member of Weald Action Group and local Green Party coordinator.
Particularly when it comes into contact with oxygen, as that's when it becomes highly explosive.
I would like to see very strict inspections regarding leakage inspections, and addressing leaks extremely promptly.
Ian Williams, professor of environmental science at the University of Southampton, shared the concerns about the explosiveness of hydrogen, and also described it as "a powerful indirect greenhouse gas".
He stated, "Leakage during production, transportation, and storage can contribute to global warming."
The absence of information about this new location will not contribute to alleviating anticipated and genuine public concern.
Plans for underground gas storage caverns beneath a lake in Northern Ireland were rejected by the UK Supreme Court last year, with opponents claiming that the salty waste from the drilling process might create a dead zone in the surrounding water.
Ms Stewart stated that they shared similar concerns.
She asked, 'Where would all that brine go? Because that's a protected coastline.'
Stephen Sanderson, CEO of UK Energy Storage Ltd, a subsidiary of UKOG, stated that the details of the project would be disclosed following the completion of the studies and made available for public consultation.
"Dorset's Triassic salt deposit is very well understood, thanks to a large number of boreholes and extensive seismic data collection," he said.
This formation is of the same geological age, stratigraphy, composition, and thickness as the Triassic salt in the Cheshire Basin, where gas storage caverns have been operating safely since 1984.
Why hydrogen?
In the future, hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources could be stored and utilized to bridge the energy gap when wind and solar power generation is insufficient.
A vital source of energy for the future of certain polluting industries.
For example, replacing
However, most hydrogen in the UK today is produced from fossil fuels and is not classified as low-carbon.
UK Energy Storage Ltd previously stated that plans for a hydrogen storage facility in Dorset could supply the nearby Solent cluster - a regional hub of industry partners, co-founded by ExxonMobil, who claim they aim to make the industry in the area more environmentally friendly.
Plans are in place for a hydrogen production facility to be constructed at the Fawley refinery near Southampton, which is part of the Solent cluster.
Local politicians and environmental activists, such as Greenpeace, have previously accused it of greenwashing, which is misleading the public about the environmental benefits of the plans.
When can we expect the ground work to begin?
UKOG stated in a release that it aims to see construction commence by 2030, with the first caverns expected to be operational between 2030 and 2032.
The decision will depend on regulatory approval, which would require a Development Consent Order from the Secretary of State, and also on the availability of financing.
The company plans to submit a proposal to the government to receive financial backing for the project.
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