Oral Answers to Questions

Andy Carter Excerpts

Tuesday 28th February 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. Minister, when I say stop, I mean stop.

[Andy Carter (Warrington South) (Con)]

16. What steps his Department is taking to support the development of the hydrogen sector in the north-west.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Andrew Bowie)]

The Government are supporting hydrogen projects around the country, including in the north-west, with capital support from the £240 million net zero hydrogen fund, support through the hydrogen production business model and through the cluster sequencing process. As my hon. Friend is aware, HyNet North West is included in the track 1 cluster.

[Andy Carter]

My Warrington South constituency is home to one of the largest aluminium can recycling plants in the UK. It takes used beverage cans and turns them into brand new cars. It is eager to transition its furnaces to hydrogen and is part of the HyNet carbon capture and storage programme. What Government support is available to major industrial manufacturers such as Novelis to help it to reduce its emissions?

[Andrew Bowie]

The Government have a range of policies to incentivise and support industry to invest in innovative, clean technologies, including low-carbon hydrogen. Those include the £170 million industrial decarbonisation challenge, the £350 million industrial energy transformation fund, the £26 million industrial hydrogen accelerator and the £55 million industrial fuel switching competition. If my hon. Friend were to invite me, I would be delighted to visit Warrington to see that world-leading aluminium plant as it transitions to hydrogen.