The Anonymous Widower

Funding Awarded For Study On Hydrogen Storage Potential In North Yorkshire

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Centrica.

This is the sub-heading.

A new study has been awarded funding to explore the potential for underground hydrogen storage near the Knapton power plant, North Yorkshire.

These two paragraphs add more details.

Knapton H2 Storage is a consortium led by gas distributor Northern Gas Networks and partnered with BGS, Centrica Energy Storage+, Third Energy Onshore and the University of Edinburgh. The consortium has been awarded ‘Discovery’ funding by Ofgem’s Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) to undertake a new study to evaluate geological storage potential in the Knapton area, North Yorkshire. The Ofgem SIF funding is designed to drive innovation in energy networks as part of the ‘Revenue = incentives + innovation + outputs’ (RIIO-2) price control for gas and electricity networks.

Energy storage and backup power will become increasingly important as the UK increases the amount of renewable energy supplying electricity. This study is the first of its kind in the region and will undertake a feasibility assessment of the area’s geology to host energy storage technologies, allowing for the decarbonisation of adjacent gas-fired peaking power plants (those that only run when there is high demand) such as that at Knapton.

Note.

  1. The Wikipedia entry for East Knapton has sections on both Knapton Generating Station and the Ryedale Gas Fields.
  2. Production of gas from the Ryedale Gas Fields was suspended in 2020.

This is the last paragraph about the Knapton generating station.

Knapton Generating Station was taken offline in 2019 and was subsequently dismantled. There are plans to install a 56 MWh battery on the site.

It looks like depending on the results of the study, Knapton H2 Storage will have plans for the Knapton Generating station site.

 

September 29, 2025 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage, Hydrogen | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

First Ever Gravity Green Energy Storage System Set For North Yorkshire Town

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

These paragraphs give an outline of the project.

Plans to create the UK’s first below ground gravity energy storage system have been unveiled in North Yorkshire.

Scottish energy storage firm Gravitricity is to apply to Ryedale District Council with its plan for a facility at East Knapton in Ryedale on the site of the former Knapton gas generator.

If completed, it could store up to four megawatt hours (4MWhs) of electricity – sufficient to power more than 9,000 homes for an hour.

It looks like the system will have an output of 4 MW.

This Google Map shows the two villages of West and East Knapton.

Note.

  1. The A64 road between Malton and Scarborough going across the map.
  2. Scarborough and the coast is about fifteen miles to the East.
  3. The Third Energy site in the North-East corner of the map.

This second Google Map shows the Third Energy site in more detail.

Note.

  1. The substation and a power line in the North-East corner of the map.
  2. The 42 MW Knapton Generating Station used to be on this site and it was powered by local gas wells.

Third Energy have now called the site Knapton Energy Park and it now has a web page, which has this mission statement.

Third Energy is developing the former Knapton Generating Station into the Knapton Energy Park. The energy park will house multiple sources of power generation and energy storage. The aim of the project is to pay a part in the development and generation of renewable energy systems in North Yorkshire, and contribute to making the UK Net Zero by 2050.

This paragraph talks about weights.

One of our technology partners has also received government funding to conduct feasibility studies for a pilot project at Knapton which would utilise suspended weights to store energy as an alternative to the traditional battery storage technologies. This project will be developed through 2022 onwards.

It looks like Gravitricity has planted an acorn in Yorkshire.

The Third Energy web site is worth an explore. This is the mission statement on the home page.

At Third Energy our aim is to be at the forefront of North Yorkshire’s transition from fossil fuels to sustainable energy. Our team are proactively playing a part in innovative energy solutions and energy development; transforming our facilities into a multi-purpose energy park and research centre.

I particularly like this page, which is entitled Plug & Abandon.

This is the outline of their P % A philosophy on the page.

As wells near the end of their life cycle they must be decommissioned and the land returned to its original state. Unfortunately, the current P&A practices of the oil and gas industry are cost prohibitive, resulting in delays to abandonment (as companies attempt to avoid the high cost), and poor abandonment practices that may be harmful to the environment.

Fortunately, there are solutions to this problem. Our ambition is to use new and innovative technologies to P&A the wells in a more effective and sustainable manner, and first to extend the period our wells may service the community by re-purposing them for geothermal energy.

Can they really convert abandoned gas wells into geothermal energy sources?

 

August 23, 2022 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage | , , , , , | 2 Comments