The role of green hydrogen in the West Midlands Combined Authority local energy system

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Green hydrogen production from weather dependent low-carbon generation is an area of growth signposted in the Committee on Climate Change's 6th Carbon Budget. This research will focus on the advantages and disadvantages of green hydrogen generation at a local level, specifically within the West Midlands Combined Authority area. Blue hydrogen production is less likely to happen within WMCAs area, and is more likely to be developed outside of the WMCA area i.e. within industrial clusters linked to carbon sequestration. There are a number of very live research areas this PhD will seek to build knowledge to help evidence, such as whether green hydrogen production would be suitable for an area such as WMCA, what are the advantages, what are the disadvantages, what are the uncertainties. Does having local generation of hydrogen and local storage help an area in its quest to decarbonise? Does it provide it with greater resilience, is it cheaper than alternatives, does it offer any advantages over blue or green hydrogen imported to the area? Increasing amounts of data are helping the creation and validation of digital twins, and the WMCA area has been chosen as a significant metropolitan area that the University of Birmingham sits within. The project will aim to engage with WMCA and Local Authority Stakeholders to capacity build knowledge of energy systems and data challenges.