Public Notice: The H2Teeside Project | The Planning Act 2008 – Section 48

NOTICE PUBLICISING A PROPOSED APPLICATION FOR A DEVELOPMENT CONSENT ORDER FOR THE H2TEESSIDE PROJECT

The Application

1. Notice is hereby given that H2 Teesside Limited (the ‘Applicant’), who registered office is Chertsey Road, Sunbury on Thames, Middlesex, TW16 7BP, intends to submit an application to the Secretary of State (the ‘SoS’) for Energy Security and Net Zero for development consent under Section 37 ‘Applications for orders granting development consent’ofthePlanningAct2008(the‘PA2008’),to authorise the construction, operation and maintenance of the H2Teesside hydrogen project (the ‘Project’).
2. H2 Teesside Limited is owned by bp Plc (‘bp’). bp will be the lead developer and operator of the Project.
3. The Applicant consulted on the Project between 14th September and 26th October 2023 (‘the first consultation’) and is now carrying out further consultation (‘the second consultation’) on the Project in respect of a number of changes that have resulted to the Proposed Application Site boundary following further design development and technical assessments and responses to the first consultation.
4. In accordance with Section 48 of the PA 2008, Regulation 4 of ‘The Infrastructure Planning (Applications: Prescribed Forms and Procedure) Regulations 2008’ and Regulation 13 of ‘The Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017’, the Applicant has a duty to publicise the Proposed Application. In accordance with those provisions, this notice also summarises the Project and explains where the consultation documents (the ‘Consultation Documents’) can be viewed.

The Project

5. The Site for the Project (the ‘Project Site’) comprises land either side of the River Tees within boroughs of Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees on Teesside and the borough of Hartlepool in County Durham. The Project Site extends to approximately 508 hectares in total. National Grid References (NGRs) for the Project Site are provided below:
   • Mid-point – 454719 524286
   • North – 451309 526476
   • East – 458760 521587
   • South – 457001 520748
   • West – 446938 521613
6. Plans are available within the ‘Consultation Documents’ onthe Project Website: www.h2teesside.co.uk (see further below) showing the current Project Site boundary.
7. H2Teesside will be one of the UK’s largest blue hydrogen production facilities with a capacity of up to 1.2 gigawatts (‘GW’) thermal, representing more than 10% of the Government’s hydrogen production target of 10 gigawatts by 2030. This equates to the production of approximately 160,000 tonnes of low carbon hydrogen per annum, with approximately two million tonnes of CO2 being captured and stored each year. The Proposed Application will, amongst other matters, seek development consent (granted in the form of a Development Consent Order ‘DCO’) for the construction, operation and maintenance of:

   a) a hydrogen production plant of up to 1.2 GW thermal to be developed in two phases;
   b) a natural gas supply connection for the supply of gas to the hydrogen production plant;
   c) an air separation unit or oxygen and nitrogen supply pipelines to supply these industrial gases for the hydrogen production process;
   d) an electricity grid connection to provide power to the Project;
   e) water supply and treatment and wastewater infrastructure;
   f) CO2 capture and compression facilities and a connection to the NEP infrastructure for the transport and storage of the CO2;
   g) hydrogen distribution pipelines to supply the low carbon hydrogen to industrial offtakers across Teesside;
   h) other associated development, including hydrogen storage; external lighting; fencing and boundary treatment; security measures; surface water and foul water drainage systems; water, electricity, gas and other utilities connections; hard and soft landscaping; biodiversity mitigation and enhancement measures; temporary contractor facilities and construction laydown areas; vehicle access roads, crossing, parking and pedestrian and cycle facilities.

8. The hydrogen production plant and its associated development (e.g. natural gas supply connection, air separation unit/oxygen and nitrogen supply pipelines, electricity grid connection, water infrastructure, hydrogen storage and CO2 capture and compression facilities and connection) and ancillary development will be located within the administrative area of the borough of Redcar and Cleveland. The hydrogen distribution pipelines corridors will extend either side of the River Tees to several potential industrial off-takers and encompass land within the administrative areas of the boroughs of Redcar and Cleveland, Stockton-on-Tees and Hartlepool.

   9. The DCO to be sought would also authorise, if required, the permanent and/or temporary compulsory acquisition of land and/or rights in land for the Project; the extinguishment and/or overriding of easements and other rights over or affecting land required for the Project; and/or the temporary occupation of land required for the Project; the application and/or disapplication of legislation relevant to the Project as may be required; permanent and temporary changes to the highway and public rights of way network as may be required; tree and hedgerow removal; a deemed marine licence for those parts of the Project within or affecting the tidal section of the River Tees or other sections of the UK Marine Area; and such ancillary, incidental and consequential works, provisions, permits, consents, waivers or releases as are necessary and/or convenient for the successful construction, operation and maintenance of the Project.

   Environmental Impact Assessment

   10. The Applicant has notified the SoS in writing under Regulation 8(1)(b) of The Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017 (the ‘EIA Regulations’) that it intends to provide an Environmental Statement (‘ES’) in respect of the Project. An ES will form part of the Proposed Application.

   11. Information so far compiled about the Project’s environmental impacts is contained in a Preliminary Environmental Information Report (‘PEIR’) and summarised in a Non-Technical Summary (‘NTS’). The PEIR reflects the Project Site boundary (and the proposals within that wider boundary) as it stood at the first consultation.

   12. A H2Teesside Project Update Brochure forms part of the Consultation Documents includes information on whether or not the conclusions of the PEIR are affected by the changes to the Project that are the subject of this second consultation.

   Consultation Documents

   13. In accordance with Section 48 of the PA 2008, Regulation 4 of ‘The Infrastructure Planning (Applications: Prescribed Forms and Procedure) Regulations 2008’ and Regulation 13 of ‘The Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017’, this notice publicises the Proposed Application, summarising the Project and explaining where the Consultation Documents can be viewed.

   14. The second consultation on the Proposed Application will take place between the 13 December 2023 and 23 January 2024.

   15. The Consultation Documents to this second consultation comprise the H2Teesside Project Update Brochure and plans and maps showing the proposed changes to the Project Site boundary. The PEIR, a Non-Technical Summary of the PEIR, the Consultation Brochure and Consultation Leaflet for the first consultation are also available to

   download and view free of charge from the Project Website: www.h2teesside.co.uk until 23 January 2024.

   16. If you are unable to access the Project Website, please email: info@h2teesside.net or telephone: 0800 080 3028 and you will be offered a paper copy of the Consultation Documents free of charge (with the exception of the PEIR which will be charged at a maximum of £250) or a USB device containing the Consultation Documents free of charge. Any details you provide to us via email or telephone will be subject to our Privacy Notice: http://h2teesside.co.uk/privacy

   17. Digital copies of the Consultation Documents will also be available to view free of charge at the following inspection locations until 23 January 2024:

   How to respond to this notice

   

   18. If you wish to respond to this notice or make comments or representations in respect of the Project, these should be sent to the Applicant. Please include your name and an address where any correspondence relating to the Project can be sent. Comments and representations may be submitted in the following ways:

   Email: info@h2teesside.net

   Post: Freepost H2TEESSIDE

   Telephone: Freephone 0800 080 3028

   Project Website: www.h2teesside.co.uk

   19. Any comments received will be analysed by the Applicant and any appointed agent of the Applicant, and copies may be made available in due course to the SoS, the Planning Inspectorate and other relevant statutory authorities so that your comments can be noted. For certain parties, those who own an interest in land or are affected by the Project, the Applicant is under a statutory duty to publish names and addresses as part of its DCO application. In respect of other people, we will request that your personal details are not placed on public record and these will be held securely by the Applicant in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and the General Data Protection Regulation and used solely in connection with the consultation process and subsequent DCO application and, except as noted above, will not be passed to third parties. Please refer to our Privacy Notice: http://h2teesside.co.uk/privacy

   20. Please note that all comments and representations must be received by the Applicant no later than 11.59pm on 23 January 2024. Responses received after this date may not be considered.

   21. If you would like any further information in respect of this notice or the Project, please contact the Applicant using one of the contact methods set out above.

   H2 Teesside Limited

   13 December 2023

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