UK urged to turn hydrogen ambition into industrial growth on World Hydrogen Day

The Association, which represents close to 100 organisations across the full hydrogen value chain, says Britain already has many of the ingredients needed to build a successful hydrogen economy – industrial expertise, established engineering and manufacturing capability, emerging projects, and a workforce with highly transferable skills.

But it says the next phase must be about converting that potential into commercial deployment.

Dr Emma Guthrie, Chief Executive of the Hydrogen Energy Association, said: “World Hydrogen Day should be about more than celebrating the potential of hydrogen. It should be about asking what we need to do now to turn that potential into economic value for the UK.

“The opportunity is significant. Hydrogen can support skilled jobs in our industrial regions, strengthen UK supply chains, attract private investment, improve energy resilience, and help businesses decarbonise.

“Those outcomes closely align with the country's wider ambitions for economic growth, industrial renewal, and energy security. The hydrogen sector is ready to play its part.

“But opportunity alone does not create investment. Businesses need confidence, and confidence comes from clarity, consistency, and a clear long-term direction.

“Now is the moment to maximise hydrogen's industrial and regional growth opportunity.”

The HEA is calling for a clear and timely delivery of the policy framework for hydrogen, including progress through the hydrogen allocation rounds, a clear long-term strategic direction for the sector, and measures that maximise the value of public support by helping British supply chains grow alongside hydrogen deployment.

The call comes as hydrogen activity becomes increasingly concentrated in some of the UK's traditional industrial heartlands, including the north east, north west, south Wales, and Scotland – creating the potential to support skilled employment and new investment in regions central to the UK's industrial future.

The scale of the opportunity was highlighted in the HEA's 2026 state of the hydrogen nation report.

Businesses surveyed for the report indicated that the sector could support around 4000 direct jobs by 2030 under the current trajectory, compared with around 17 000 under an improved policy landscape – more than four times as many.

The report also identified Scotland, north-east England, and north-west England as the three most attractive UK regions for hydrogen investment, underlining the potential relationship between hydrogen deployment and regional industrial growth.

There is a wider supply-chain prize too.

Analysis highlighted by the HEA from the hydrogen innovation initiative suggests that securing a 10% share of the global hydrogen technology market could contribute £46 billion a year to the UK economy by 2050 and support 410 000 jobs.

The HEA argues that the economic case should not be considered solely through the cost of individual hydrogen projects.

Hydrogen production, storage, and use can form part of a wider energy system capable of managing renewable intermittency, reducing curtailment, strengthening energy security, and reducing dependence on fossil fuels. The Association says future decisions should therefore consider hydrogen's potential impact on whole-system energy costs, alongside its industrial and decarbonisation benefits.

Momentum is already building, with projects across the country moving from development towards commercial delivery, while the government's second hydrogen allocation round shortlisted 27 electrolytic hydrogen projects across England, Scotland, and Wales.

HEA members are also demonstrating the breadth of the emerging market, from hydrogen production and storage to transport, industrial applications, infrastructure, and new production pathways.

Dr Guthrie added: “We are no longer talking about a hypothetical industry. Businesses are investing, projects are being developed, and British companies are building expertise that can compete internationally.

“The question is how quickly and how successfully we turn that momentum into a scaled UK market.

“Public support should do more than enable individual projects. Used strategically, programmes such as the hydrogen allocation rounds can help stimulate domestic manufacturing, strengthen supply chains and ensure that more of the economic and social value created by hydrogen stays here in Britain.

“That requires government and industry to continue working closely together. We ultimately want the same things – economic growth, greater energy resilience, thriving industrial regions, and a successful transition to a lower-carbon economy.

“On World Hydrogen Day, our message is simple: the opportunity is here. Now is the time to turn ambition into delivery.”

The HEA has been working with parliamentarians and government to build an understanding of the sector and the policy conditions needed for it to grow.

Ahead of the summer recess, its parliamentary campaign resulted in 34 written parliamentary questions being tabled on hydrogen-related issues, helping to bring questions around investment, deployment, and policy certainty directly into Parliament.

The Association will continue engaging with ministers, parliamentarians, and industry to support the development of a competitive UK hydrogen economy.

Read the article online at: https://www.globalhydrogenreview.com/hydrogen/08102026/uk-urged-to-turn-hydrogen-ambition-into-industrial-growth-on-world-hydrogen-day/