Uk Oil & Gas Plc Announces Second Dorset Hydrogen Storage Site

UK Oil & Gas PLC is delighted to announce that, via its wholly owned subsidiary UK Energy Storage ("UKEn"), it has executed a heads of terms covering the 60-year lease of land and subsurface mineral rights for a second underground salt-cavern hydrogen storage facility in south Dorset. The land lies above the thickest onshore part of the Dorset Triassic salt deposit and is also in close proximity to SGN's planned H2 Connect hydrogen pipeline, linking the proposed storage caverns directly to the planned Solent Cluster and the wider southern UK hydrogen super-cluster (see RNS 27th June 2024).

Each UKEn hydrogen storage site aims to provide around 6.5-10 Terawatt-hours ("TWh") of working storage per annum, equating to around 10-20% of the UK's estimated 2050 hydrogen storage demand*. UKEn's aim of delivering these key strategic energy infrastructure elements is fully in step with the Government's ambitious target to decarbonise the UK power system by 2030.

UKEn will now proceed ahead to finalise the lease agreement, complete salt cavern design studies and commence other works necessary to submit a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project planning application. The Company also aims to apply for government Revenue Support for at least one Dorset site (see RNS 29th May, 27th June, 2nd August 2024).

Stephen Sanderson the Company's Chief Executive commented:

"UKEn's new Dorset site is optimally placed to exploit the thickest part of the onshore Dorset Triassic salt deposit, permitting large underground caverns to be emplaced via a modest sized surface facility. Its proximity to SGN's H2 Connect pipeline is deliberate and will ensure storage can be directly linked to the planned Solent Cluster and wider Southern UK hydrogen networks.

We look forward to continued collaboration with government to develop these strategic UK energy infrastructure assets and to help make the 2030 UK power decarbonisation target a reality."

Note: * National Grid's July 2023 System Transformation Scenario and the Royal Society's September 2023 Large-Scale Electricity Storage Report estimate 2050 UK hydrogen storage demand at around 50 TWh and 60-100 TWh, respectively.