On Thursday 7th November, HyDEX held an event at the Derby Museum of Making, to celebrate the achievements of the HyDEX programme.
HyDEX has been running from January 2022 following funding from Research England for a consortium of seven the Midlands Innovation universities, led by Keele University.
The aim of the HyDEX programme has been to help to kickstart the development of the hydrogen economy in the Midlands by bringing together partners in industry, local government, academia and the public sector with an interest in hydrogen.
A new energy revolution
At the event in Derby, which was attended by over 200 people from the region and beyond, Professor Mark Ormerod from Keele University said it was fitting that the event was taking place in a building that was at the heart of the first industrial revolution when it was the Derby Silk Mill – the first fully mechanised factory in the world. Professor Ormerod talked about how we are now entering the energy revolution, and that the HyDEX programme has played a vital part in raising the profile of the potential of hydrogen in the net-zero future in the Midlands and beyond.
Professor Martin Freer, the Academic Director of HyDEX, and now Chief Executive of the Faraday Institution talked about HyDEX’s achievements, including how it has pushed forward new technologies through creating demonstration projects at university partners which are looking at new ways of producing and storing hydrogen.
Martin explained that HyDEX has also introduced new hydrogen skills and training programmes and has been undertaking work to map out the skills needed by industry for the future of hydrogen. Martin discussed some of the international links that HyDEX has made in South Korea, Singapore and China in order to exchange ideas about best practice.
Influencing energy policy
The subject of hydrogen policy was also discussed, and Martin explained how HyDEX is helping to influence policy through work it has done looking at the needs of industrial sectors such as aviation, road transport, agriculture, construction and farming.
HyDEX has also launched a report looking at the potential of Hydrogen Rail in the Midlands, and later this month will be launching its study into the case of UK-EU Collaboration in Hydrogen.
There were also presentations from innovators who have been supported by HyDEX, including Green Coordinate, Nium and Microcabs, who explained how HyDEX has supported them in technology development.
Developing skills
Following this was a session on skills, where interns on the HyDEX micro-internship programme, including Clinton Liu, Numan Ahmed, Chloe Tindale and Shakana Oniyah discussed how they had benefitted from industrial work experience trough the HyDEX programme. This was followed by a panel discussion by industry representatives and academic specialists who gave their thoughts on what more was needed to develop the skills needed in hydrogen.
During the lunchbreak delegates had the opportunity to visit the stands of partners of the HyDEX programme in the exhibition area, which included Hi-ACT, University of British Geological Survey, Nottingham, East Midlands Hydrogen, Midlands Innovation and several other businesses involved in hydrogen in the region.
The future of hydrogen in the Midlands
In the afternoon, Sally Brewis from Cadent provided here thoughts on the future of hydrogen in the region. She explained how the Midlands was a hydrogen innovation centre with huge expertise in universities and businesses in the region, both large and small. Sally also discussed Caden’s plans for pipeline infrastructure which could connect the supply with the demand by industry for hydrogen, creating a hydrogen valley in the region. She also explained how East Midlands Hydrogen is working on EmStor to identify hydrogen storage in the region such as some of the depleted oil and gas fields in the Midlands.
The session finished with a panel discussion chaired by Sarah Windrum of Horiba-Mira and featuring Matt Barney of GeoPura, Kelly Manders of East Midlands Hydrogen and Professor Martin Freer, who gave their thoughts about the strengths, opportunities and challenges facing the Midlands in the hydrogen sector.
Keep the momentum going
Professor Martin Freer said: “HyDEX has achieved a great deal. It has shown that there is huge interest and demand for hydrogen in the Midlands, and that there is a will here to develop a hydrogen economy.
“It is important now that we keep this momentum and this network going. We need to continue to make the government aware of the important role we see for hydrogen in the Midlands, and to push for the policies, infrastructure and funding that are needed to ensure that hydrogen’s great potential is realised’
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Photographs from the event
