We back the Humber, now it’s time for Government to do the same
- Ian Radley, Chief Commercial Officer at National Gas's opinion piece originally appeared in the Yorkshire Post.
25 June 2026: For more than half a century, the Humber has powered Britain. From the first landing of North Sea gas at Easington in 1967 to the growth of world-leading industry at Saltend and Immingham, this region has been at the heart of the nation’s energy story.
Today, as the country faces a defining moment in the energy transition, the Humber stands ready once again to lead and attract new industries to our shores to grow our economy, this time as Britain’s first hydrogen heartland.
Hydrogen is no longer an abstract policy ambition. It is a practical solution to two of the biggest challenges to Britain’s energy transition: how to decarbonise industries that cannot simply switch to electricity and how to generate clean electricity when the wind isn’t blowing and the sun isn’t shining.
The question is not whether hydrogen will play a role in Britain’s future, but where that future will be built.
But there is a choice to be made.
In the coming months, the UK Government will launch a competitive process to secure half a billion pounds of investment to develop Britain’s first industrial hydrogen cluster. That investment will either go to the Humber, or to another part of the country.
Today, a strong, deliverable plan is on the table. The Humber Hydrogen partnership, bringing together National Gas, Centrica, Equinor and SSE Thermal, is proposing a fully integrated network connecting hydrogen production, storage and end users such as power stations and industry across East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.
The impact could be transformative. Independent analysis published today shows that locating Britain’s first hydrogen cluster in the Humber could generate £17 billion in economic growth from the construction and operation of the cluster’s hydrogen assets and support up to 53,000 jobs during construction, with hundreds more sustained long-term.
There are clear, important reasons why the Humber is the obvious choice for this Government investment. It already leads the way in hydrogen, with up to six power stations investing in hydrogen-ready capacity and a growing pipeline of projects set to deliver significant quantities of low-carbon hydrogen production. Beneath our feet, the salt caverns at Aldbrough offer one of the UK’s largest potential hydrogen storage resources, vital for balancing supply and strengthening energy security.
And perhaps most importantly, this is a plan shaped and backed by the region itself and builds on the excellent work already undertaken by the Humber Energy Board and others. Local industry, major employers like British Steel and Phillips 66, trade unions, and representatives from across the political spectrum are united behind a common goal: securing the investment that will power the Humber’s next phase as a global leader in low-carbon industry.
But this isn’t just about infrastructure. It’s about people, place and a sense of hope for the future. It’s about ensuring that communities which have powered Britain for generations are not left behind in the transition but are instead at its very heart.
Today, National Gas along with our partners and representatives from right across the region will take our case right to the heart of Government.
The opportunity is clear. It is within reach. But it is not guaranteed.
Together, we need to unite behind the Humber Hydrogen campaign in the coming weeks and months.But the question for the Government is simple. We back the Humber as the obvious choice for Britain’s first hydrogen heartland. Are they going to do the same?