Sinopec News Network reported on June 28 that after the British Secretary of Commerce Kwasi Kwarteng visited Oslo, the Norwegian oil and gas company Equinor said on Tuesday that it had raised its hydrogen production target in the UK to 1.8 GW (GW ).

Equinor said that it plans to add 1.2 GW of low-carbon hydrogen production capacity, mainly to supply Keadby hydrogen. This is the world’s first large-scale 100% hydrogen power plant jointly developed by Equinor and the British utility company SSE.

It added that, waiting for the support of the British government, the plant may start operations before the end of the decade.

Equinor CEO Anders Opedal said that the company’s project will help the UK achieve its climate goals. He attended the meeting with Kwarteng and Norwegian Minister of Petroleum and Energy Tina Bru.

Opedal said in a statement: “Our low-carbon projects in the UK are built on our own industrial experience and will play an important role in the leading position in the heart of the UK industry.”

The UK’s goal is to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and 5 GW of clean hydrogen production capacity by 2030, and it is providing financial support for some decarbonization projects.

Equinor has planned to build a 0.6 GW plant in northeast England to produce so-called “blue” hydrogen from natural gas while capturing related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

The company is also involved in a project to develop carbon dioxide transportation and storage infrastructure in the region.

The production of hydrogen from water by using renewable electricity or combined carbon capture and storage (CCS) to produce hydrogen from natural gas is considered to be critical to the decarbonization of industries such as steel and chemicals.

Nowadays, most of the hydrogen is produced from natural gas, and the related carbon dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere.