UK and Canada hydrogen findings promise years of clean power

Research by the University of Durham shows that depleted North Sea oil and gas fields could store enough green hydrogen to meet the United Kingdom’s electricity demand for up to seven years, eliminating the need for gas‑fired power plants by 2040. The study mapped storage scenarios using half‑hourly generation data and concluded that large‑scale underground hydrogen reservoirs would provide reliable seasonal backup for wind and solar energy.

Separately, scientists studying the Canadian Shield have identified vast natural hydrogen deposits that could, in theory, supply global energy needs for roughly 170,000 years at a cost of less than $1 per kilogram. The low‑cost “geologic hydrogen” differs from industrially produced hydrogen and could make hydrogen‑based fuels competitive for shipping, steel and aviation, although extraction technology is still in early development.