Ian Rippin responds to the publication of the Hydrogen Strategy

17 August 2021

“MCS does not believe green hydrogen is the solution for heating our homes. Though, we do support the strategic use of green hydrogen in the hard to decarbonise sectors such as transport, shipping, heavy industry and aviation.

“Using green hydrogen to heat our homes is up to five times more expensive than current natural gas prices, and up to seven times less efficient than using renewable energy to power a heat pump.

“Given the current lack of supporting infrastructure and carbon capture, usage and storage facilities, plus the ultimate cost to consumers of adopting a hydrogen-based strategy, we would urge government to reconsider. Focusing on hydrogen distracts from retrofitting our homes, potentially diverting huge sums of government finances from where they are most needed.

“The government threw the renewables sector into chaos axing the Green Homes Grant early. Meanwhile, another key support for industry and consumers, the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive, is due to end in March 2022, with no firm plan for its successor. We’re facing a policy cliff-edge.

“The government urgently needs to invest in retrofitting our homes and decarbonising heat now, especially given the range of proven zero-carbon solutions currently available to decarbonise our homes.

“Our national ambition to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028 simply will not be met if the government continues to stutter when an immediate overhaul of our green economy is required.”