UK based Meld Energy is seeking a government grant to help fund the construction of a new hydrogen plant worth £180 million.

The company has an agreement to build the facility at the Saltend Chemicals Park near Hull, which is owned by px Group. If completed, it would become one of Britain's largest hydrogen plants.

Meld Energy, based in Surrey, was founded in 2020. It is part owned by World Kinect Sustainability Ventures, part of World Fuel Services Corporation, a New York-listed group valued at about $1.5 billion.

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Meld has applied for grant funding from the government’s Net Zero Hydrogen Fund and will begin work in November if successful.

The government is attempting to rapidly develop Britain's hydrogen power capabilities as part of efforts to hit its net zero targets. Green hydrogen is produced with zero emissions by using renewable electricity to power electrolysis, splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen, which burns cleanly, then can be used as a green alternative to fossil fuels, especially in industries that are hard to decarbonise through electrification.

Commenting on the proposals, Geoff Holmes, chief executive of px Group, said: "Meld's plans are on a scale that will make a significant impact on domestic decarbonisation. It is a project that the government should find impossible to ignore."