Does the United Kingdom have sufficient geological storage capacity to support a hydrogen economy? Estimating the salt cavern storage potential of bedded halite formations

Hydrogen can be used to enable decarbonisation of challenging applications such as provision heat, and a fuel for heavy transport. The UK has set out strategy developing new low carbon hydrogen sector by 2030. Underground storage will key component any regional or national network because the variability both supply demand across different end-use applications. For pure hydrogen, salt caverns currently remain only commercially proven subsurface technology implemented at scale. A therefore required service network. To facilitate planning systems, this study presents modelling approach evaluate UK's theoretical capacity in bedded rock salt. findings suggest an upper bound potential exceeding 64 million tonnes, providing 2150 TWh capacity, distributed three discrete basins UK. modelled cavern been interrogated identify practical inter-seasonal suitable integration transmission system. Depending on spacing, peak load deliverability between 957 1876 GW is technically possible with over 70% found East Yorkshire Humber region. range geologic uncertainty affecting estimates approximately ±36%. In principle, domestic heating 170 met using withdrawn from alone, albeit practice unevenly distributed. analysis indicates that availability does not present limiting constraint development low-carbon general framework presented paper applied other regions estimate region-specific caverns. • presented. upper-bound onshore TWh. Peak heat Around 1000 may displace gas consumption.