The Anonymous Widower

Move Over Handy Andy: Dave Tops Britain’s DIY Leaderboard As Research Reveals The Jobs Best Left To The Experts

The title of this post is the same as that of this news item from Centrica.

These five bullet points act as sub-headings.

New research from British Gas reveals Dave, Steve and John top Britain’s DIY names leaderboard, while Emma emerges as the handiest female name

From fixing door handles to repairing boilers, new research reveals which household jobs Brits are happy to tackle and which they’d rather leave to the experts

British Gas encourages Brits to know their DIY limits with a giant tea-dispensing toolbox as part of its ‘Don’t Do It Yourself’ campaign

These two paragraphs add some of detail.

Forget Handy Andy, it’s more likely to be Handy Dave coming to the rescue, according to new research from British Gas. The study of 2,001 adults found Dave (13%) tops Britain’s DIY names leaderboard, followed by Steve, John and David (all 12%), while Emma (4%) emerged as the handiest female name. Further down, Paul (5%) and Nigel (4%) were among the names identified as least handy around the home.

And it seems British Gas has a few Handy Daves of its own, with 40 engineers sharing the nation’s handiest name. Of course, being handy isn’t just about knowing your way around a toolbox, but knowing when to put the tools down and call in an expert. While Brits are happy to roll up their sleeves for everyday tasks such as painting a wall (68%), hanging a picture (66%) and fixing a loose door handle (50%), they’re far more likely to leave specialist jobs such as repairing a boiler (73%), electrical wiring (68%) and central heating repairs (66%) to the professionals.

It’s only a bit of fun data analysis, but if they analyse the jobs they do with this care, it must be to the benefit of customers.

November 9, 2026 Posted by | Computing, Energy | , , | Leave a comment

BW ESS Puts Europe’s Largest BESS Into Commercial Operation In The UK

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Energy Storage News.

This is the sub-heading.

BW ESS has put its 350MW/1,240MWh Hams Hall BESS project in the UK into operation, the largest in Europe.

Note.

  1. Hams Hall is in Birmingham
  2. That is roughly a three-and-a-half hour battery.
  3. Hams Hall’s capacity will increase to 400MW/1,424MWh once a second phase is complete.
  4. Google AI said the first phase was commissioned in late October 2026.

The Hams Hall BESS is certainly not on the small side.

In Manchester and Scotland Highview Power are building two liquid-air batteries.

  • The Carrington battery in Manchester will be a 50 MW/300 MWh battery.
  • The Hunterston battery in Scotland will be a 300 MW/3.2 GWh battery.

I can see a lot of healthy competition developing between the two technologies.

The two technologies can both build batteries around the same size.

But liquid-air technology appears to offer a longer duration.

 

 

November 9, 2026 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Energy, Energy Storage | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

New Bristol Railway Station Opening Date Announced

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.

This is the sub-heading.

The opening date for a new railway station in Bristol designed to serve the new town Brabazon and the future Aviva Arena has been announced

These two paragraphs add more details about the location and the trains serving the new station.

Bristol Brabazon Station – near the site of the former North Filton Station – will welcome its first passengers with an 07:10 service on Monday 23 November marking a return to passenger trains on the currently freight-only Henbury Line.

An hourly service will run between Bristol Temple Meads and Bristol Brabazon, also calling at Lawrence Hill, Stapleton Road, Ashley Down and Filton Abbey Wood.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the route to Bristol Temple Meads station.

Note.

  1. Bristol Temple Meads sttion is marked by the blue arrow.
  2. The new town of Brabazon can be picked out to the North of a yellow railway marked AFR.
  3. The intermediate stations ; Lawrence Hill, Stapleton Road, Ashley Down and Filton Abbey Wood can be picked out in blue on the orange track.

This second OpenRailwayMap shows the route to Bristol Parkway station.

Note.

  1. Patchway and Bristol Parkway stations are on the Great Western Main Line between London Paddington and Cardiff Central stations.
  2. Bristol Brabazon station is to the West of Filton West junction.
  3. The grey square a little further West and on the South side of the railway, is the Aviva Arena.
  4. Trains will be able to go to Bristol Brabazon station from either Bristol Parkway, Bristol Temple Meads or stations like Newport, Cardiff Central and Swansea.

It certainly looks at a first glance, that Bristol is getting an arena with good rail access from all directions.

I also feel that judging by its Wikipedia entry, Bristol could be getting a spectacular arena.

  1. It is being converted from the hangars built for the Brabazon, which was an airliner designed by the Bristol Aircraft Company.
  2. The arena will acommodate 20,000 spectators, which is a similar capacity to the O2 Arena in London.
  3. Grimshaw Architects are involved.
  4. It is a £100 million project.

My only hope is that no vibes from the ill-fated Brabazon airliner rub off on the arena.

November 7, 2026 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

First Community-Funded Solar-Plus-Storage Plant Opens For Investment

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Solar Power Portal.

This is the sub-heading.

The 7.4MW Common Lot solar park will be co-located with a 10MWh grid-connected BESS.

Note.

  1. UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has a median benchmark of 5.6 acres (2.25 hectares) per megawatt, so this solar park will be around 41.4 acres or a square with quarter-mile sides.
  2. If the BESS can provide full power for two hours, which is common, then it will have an output of 5 MW.
  3. Common Lot Solar Park has a web site.
  4. Both my houses in Suffolk, were in hamlets, where a system like this could have been installed.

I can see this model being repeated in rural areas or where there is a large building, that could support a large solar roof.

November 7, 2026 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Energy, Energy Storage, Finance & Investment | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Is There A Working HiiROC Electrolyser in The United States?

I don’t know, but Google AI gave me this answer.

As of late 2026, there is no working or operational HiiROC electrolyser (Thermal Plasma Electrolysis plant) in the United States.

While the UK-based company has expanded its focus to the U.S. market—incorporating HiiROC USA in Delaware and working with the U.S. Department of Energy’s GREET model to calculate its carbon intensity—its active and pilot deployments remain concentrated in Europe and the United Kingdom.

Current HiiROC Projects & Status

Instead of U.S. facilities, HiiROC’s current physical footprint and major milestones include:

The Brigg Pilot Plant (UK): A demonstration facility built in partnership with Centrica at a gas-peaking plant in Lincolnshire, England, which represents their primary working test site.

Industrial Scale Deployments (UK): Scaled industrial rollouts, such as a major project at Cemex’s Rugby cement plant and a pilot facility at Saltend Chemicals Park in Hull.

Future Pipelines: The company has targeted commercial unit deployments starting in 2026, alongside feasibility studies for massive clean methanol and hydrogen plants in Scotland.

The U.S. hydrogen market currently relies heavily on other local producers (such as Monolith Materials for methane pyrolysis or Plug Power and Electric Hydrogen for water electrolysis), though HiiROC is actively building its in-country team to service future pipeline demand from U.S. customers.

You do wonder, if because of Trump, no American companies decided to get involved with HiiROC.

November 6, 2026 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen | , , , , | Leave a comment

Is There A Working HiiROC Electrolyser in Japan?

I don’t know, but Google AI gave me this answer.

No, there is no working HiiROC electrolyser (Thermal Plasma Electrolysis unit) in Japan.
HiiROC and Tokyo Gas signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in January 2025 to jointly assess and explore the potential deployment of HiiROC’s technology across Japan, rather than an operational installation.

It looks to me that the Japanese are taken a careful route.

November 6, 2026 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen | , , , | Leave a comment

Is There A Working HiiROC Electrolyser in Korea?

I don’t know, but Google AI gave me this answer.

No, there is currently no working HiiROC electrolyser operational in South Korea.
While the UK-based clean technology company HiiROC has established deep ties to South Korea through major corporate investments, its active deployments and pilot projects remain focused primarily in Europe and the United Kingdom.

The South Korean Connection

Although a physical unit is not yet running in the country, South Korea plays a vital role in HiiROC’s growth:

Strategic Backing: Major South Korean automotive and industrial giants, including Hyundai Motor Group, Kia, and HD Hyundai, are key strategic investors. They backed HiiROC during its major £26 million funding rounds to support the scaling of its Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE) technology.

Future Intentions: Financial and sustainability reports indicate an explicit intent to manufacture and deploy products in South Korea in collaboration with these local partners as part of the country’s broader push toward a hydrogen economy.

Where HiiROC Electrolysers Are Working

HiiROC’s initial real-world demonstrations and operational commercial pilots are located closer to its home base:

Germany: A 400 kg/day hydrogen production facility in Thierbach, developed alongside energy companies Wintershall Dea and VNG.

United Kingdom: Active projects injecting hydrogen into gas-fired peak power plants with Centrica at Brigg Energy Park, a biohydrogen pilot with EPi in Chelmsford, and industrial decarbonization efforts with the building materials company Cemex at their Rugby cement plant.

South Korea is aggressively building out its own domestic hydrogen capabilities, including a planned 320MW water electrolysis facility at Saemangeum and a 20 MW byproduct hydrogen plant in Ulsan, but these currently utilize different technologies rather than HiiROC’s proprietary plasma torches.

I can see Korea eventually being a large market for HiiROC.

 

November 6, 2026 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen | , , | Leave a comment

Is There A Working HiiROC Electrolyser in Germany?

I don’t know, but Google AI gave me this answer.

Yes, there are active initiatives and facilities utilizing HiiROC’s technology in Germany, backed heavily by German energy giants.
HiiROC’s proprietary technology is fundamentally different from traditional water electrolysis; it uses Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE) (a type of methane pyrolysis) to split natural gas or biomethane into clean “turquoise” hydrogen and solid carbon black.

The German Pilot Plant (Wintershall Dea & VNG)

The primary deployment in Germany is a pilot facility developed through a strategic partnership with German energy companies Wintershall Dea and VNG AG, both of whom are also direct stakeholders in HiiROC.

Location & Purpose: Built at a site in eastern Germany, this facility was designed as the first of its kind in the country to produce turquoise hydrogen on a commercial pilot scale.

Capacity: The plant has a nominal capacity of 400 kg of hydrogen per day (equivalent to an annual energy output of nearly 5 GWh).

Operation: The facility utilizes HiiROC’s modular plasma units to extract hydrogen directly from the gas grid at the point of use, capturing the carbon as solid carbon black—which is then routed for industrial use (such as in tire manufacturing and construction materials)

International Scaling & Automation Support

To transition these modular systems into wider industrial operation across Germany and the rest of Europe, HiiROC maintains a research lab in mainland Europe and signed a major partnership with German engineering giant Siemens. Siemens provides the advanced control technology, safety automation, and factory scaling expertise necessary to mass-produce and safely operate these high-pressure plasma electrolysers in demanding industrial environments.

Germany is certainly onboard and helping, with this exciting development from Hull.

 

 

November 6, 2026 Posted by | Hydrogen | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Is HiiROC Involved In The Manufacture Of Carbon Black?

The HiiROC process for creating green hydrogen, also creates carbon black.

So I asked this question of Google AI, to see how and if, it is affecting the market for carbon black.

This is the reply I received.

Yes, HiiROC is directly involved in manufacturing carbon black, but as a valuable, high-purity by-product of their primary focus: clean hydrogen production.

Based in Hull, England, HiiROC utilizes a proprietary process called Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE). This technology uses an electric field generated by patented plasma torches to split hydrocarbons (such as natural gas, flare gas, or biomethane).

Instead of creating carbon dioxide, like traditional hydrogen manufacturing, the process splits the molecules into two clean, solid outputs:

1. Affordable Clean Hydrogen
2. Solid, Clean Carbon Black

Impact on the Carbon Black Market

Replacing High-Emission Processes: Conventional carbon black is traditionally manufactured via high-pollution, fossil-fuel oil furnace methods. HiiROC’s TPE process yields a zero-emission, sustainable alternative.

Commercial Applications: HiiROC is actively commercializing its solid carbon black for traditional applications—such as tires, rubbers, plastics, inks, and toners—while collaborating with institutions like the University of Hull to research newer applications like soil enhancers, construction materials, and environmental filters.

Global Footprint: Demonstrating its scalable manufacturing capability, HiiROC signed an agreement with Tokyo Gas to deploy its plasma technology in Japan, exploring the commercial use of its “plasma carbon black” for decarbonizing lower-carbon industrial materials. They are also running a first-of-a-kind trial at the Cemex cement plant in Rugby, UK.

You might consider that HiiROC is producing zero-carbon or green carbon black.

 

 

 

November 6, 2026 Posted by | Energy, Hydrogen, Manufacturing | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hydrogen-Powered Toy Train Planned For Kalka-Shimla Seritage Route

The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the New Indian Express.

This is the sub-heading.

The Railways has since completed a survey of the route and identified a site at Barog railway station for setting up a hydrogen fuel plant

These paragraphs gives a few more details.

The Ministry of Railways is planning to introduce a hydrogen-powered toy train on the Kalka-Shimla railway line, a UNESCO World Heritage route, to reduce pollution and promote cleaner transport.

The initiative is part of the Centre’s ‘Hydrogen for Heritage’ programme, which aims to introduce hydrogen-powered trains on selected heritage routes. Unlike conventional diesel trains, hydrogen trains use fuel-cell technology to generate electricity, with water as the principal by-product.

In 2023, the Union Government announced plans to operate 35 hydrogen trains under the programme, including one on the Kalka-Shimla route. The following year, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu wrote to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, urging the Centre to explore the possibility of introducing hydrogen-powered trains on the historic route.

The Railways has since completed a survey of the route and identified a site at Barog railway station for setting up a hydrogen fuel plant.

Note.

It is using hydrogen fuel cell technology.

India is getting very serious about hydrogen-powered trains.

This railway could become a very important tourism site.

Shimla has an altitude of 2,276 metres.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the route of the Kalka-Shimla Railway.

Note.

  1. The Kalka-Shimla Railway is shown in yellow.
  2. Shimla is in the North-East corner of the map.
  3. Kalka is in the South-West corner of the map.
  4. Barog station is marked by the blue arrow.
  5. The Kalka-ShimlaRailway has a Wikipedia entry.

If I ever get back to India, I shall certainly visit.

November 6, 2026 Posted by | Hydrogen | , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

« Previous Entries