I read with interest the article by Rachel Millard and Jim Pickard on new financial support for renewable energy projects (‘Renewable energy budget boosted to £1.5 billion’, Report, 31 July). I welcome the announcement and its contribution to making the UK a clean energy superpower.

We welcome government support for new technologies such as wind power. I am a firm believer in a controlled transition from unchecked fossil fuels to green technologies.

However, we must also highlight the potential risks associated with our approach to decarbonising the UK electricity system, as we rely on gas to complement renewables and meet peak demand when the grid needs support.

To support the expansion of wind energy, we need low-carbon gases such as hydrogen to replace the functions that gas performs today, and I firmly believe that the UK can play a world-leading role in this technology.

Our gas transport network is the backbone that ensures that our gas supplies energy to our power plants and our industry. To achieve clean energy by 2030, we need to use this network as a backbone to transport hydrogen to where it is needed. We must not lose sight of the importance of our existing gas network.

We have already tested hydrogen blends – and most recently 100 per cent hydrogen – at a test site in Cumbria that replicates our national gas transport network, proving that we can transport this form of gas safely and effectively through our pipeline network.

I firmly believe that the UK can be a world leader in this technology while also securing economic benefits – with more business for companies and more jobs for people.

We’ve proven our pipes are up to the task and now it’s time to deliver.

Jon Butterworth
Chairman of National Gas,
Warwick, Warwickshire, UK