Hy Deploy Project
Otto Simon Ltd • January 30, 2018
OSL is supporting a pioneering energy trial of blended hydrogen and natural gas
Reducing carbon emissions is a top priority for the UK; having committed to an 80% reduction by 2050. By blending hydrogen into the normal gas supply across the UK, 6m tons of carbon could be saved every year; that’s the equivalent of removing 2.5m cars from the road.
For more than a year a consortium of grid operators and technical experts have been working together to develop the technology to produce low-carbon hydrogen and blend it into the gas network. The project will conduct a year-long live trial of blended gas at Keele University; using the campus’ own private gas network to host the trial. As the largest campus in the UK, the university’s private network serves a mixture of residential and commercial buildings, providing an accurate representation of a small town.
The project aims to establish and demonstrate the level of hydrogen that can be safely blended with natural gas for use across the UK, and will provide practical evidence that the hydrogen blended gas can be delivered without any impact to customers. As the existing national gas grid was originally designed for Hydrogen rich gas before the North Sea boom provided a flood of cheap natural gas to burn instead, it is expected that few appliances would need to be replaced to safely work with the hydrogen blend.
HyDeploy is a consortium between Cadent Gas Limited, Northern Gas Networks, Keele University, Health & Safety Laboratory, ITM Power and Progressive Energy, the HyDeploy project is also supported by specialist gas safety testing specialists Kiwa, industry research experts Dave Lander, with technical consultancy provided by Otto Simon.
Read more about this exciting project on the HyDeploy website and in Otto Simon's project reference.
Back to Blog
Show More
Recent Blog Posts

Otto Simon recently attended the Hydrogen Energy Association (HEA) annual conference in Westminster, London, a key event for the hydrogen industry. The conference featured a keynote speech by Sarah Jones, UK Government Minister of State for Industry and Net Zero , highlighting the government's commitment to this crucial sector. Our team had the invaluable opportunity to hear directly from industry-leading hydrogen experts , gaining first-hand insights into the latest policies and government funding initiatives. This direct access to information is vital for staying at the forefront of hydrogen advancements. Congratulations to Clive Mansfield and Clare Dunkerley from our team, who actively participated in the networking sessions, engaging in discussions about hydrogen and safety —a critical aspect of our work. They also gathered useful information that will directly benefit our ongoing hydrogen projects.

Here at Otto Simon, we're committed to staying at the forefront of safety and compliance in Process Plant projects. That's why two of our seasoned principal engineers, Mike Wray and Mike Westerman, recently attended a crucial refresher course on machinery regulations at the HSE Science and Research Centre. In the world of Process Plant projects, it's common to encounter machinery assemblies where vendors don't provide a declaration of conformity. With the recent publication of the new EU Machinery Regulation 2023/1230/EU, it's more important than ever to be on top of the latest guidelines. This ensures we can continue to offer our UK-based clients the best advice on their responsibilities and how to apply conformity assessments when machinery risks are present. This applies to both new equipment and the repurposing of existing machinery. Considering there are over 800 standards related to machinery design, our approach is meticulous. We utilise a thorough hazard identification process to carefully evaluate risks and implement best practice safety mitigations in all our designs. This proactive approach helps us ensure the highest level of safety for your projects. Please get in touch for assistance.

Prime Minister, Kier Starmer visits St Helens, Merseyside today as he paid a visit to the Glass Futures facility! The Prime Minister spoke to workers at the facility this morning, Thursday, May 29 during a visit. “Can I just start by thanking those that work here for showing me this morning what you do, showing me the skills that you have, telling me a bit about what goes on here and the incredible history. “If I’ve understood what you’ve told me glass has been made on this very site for the best part of 250 years." “I think Pilkington may have been running the business before, and we can actually just see Pilkington out there so for you to be continuing with Glass Futures, very apt name, working here is fantastic and I can see how proud you are of what you do, each of you contributing with your different skills to what is happening here." The Labour politician added: “As I’ve said many, many, times you can read a briefing in London or you can come and see the workforce and come and see the people with the real skills and understand what they’re doing and thank you for allowing me to do the second of those as I’ve got a really good sense of what you’re doing here, how you’re doing it and the incredible way you’re doing it, each of you contributing in your own way and I can see that pride.” The £54m innovative research and technology facility was opened in Peasley Cross in 2023, at the former United Glass site. The mission is to help decarbonise the global glass industry by pioneering ways of making carbon-neutral glass.