The Scottish Affairs Committee will hear testimony from bp’s head of country and Shell UK Upstream’s Energy Transition Manager regarding the role hydrogen could play in the energy mix.

Their panel will be preceded by the Chief Executive of Hydrogen UK and the Energy Policy Manager of Offshore Energies UK as the Committee evaluates what problems the sector confronts and what support the UK Government can provide to promote the use of low carbon hydrogen.

Due to North Sea oil and gas deposits, Scotland has access to secure geological storage, and as such could play a vital role in the transition from fossil fuels to renewables and low-carbon energy. The storage capabilities allow for the storage of enormous volumes of hydrogen for future usage or CO2 as part of the synthesis of blue hydrogen.

The second hearing of the Committee’s investigation into Hydrogen and Carbon Capture in Scotland. It coincides with initiatives to prioritize domestic energy generation and supply.

In May, bp announced its intention to create 1.5GW of hydrogen in the UK by 2030, which equals 15% of the government’s 10GW goal. In addition, it is collaborating with the Aberdeen City Council to construct a scalable green hydrogen production, storage, and distribution plant. Shell has teamed with Storegga (Pale Blue Dot) and Harbour Energy on Project Acorn, which aims to boost the UK’s decarbonisation efforts by providing carbon capture and storage and hydrogen infrastructure.