BP plans to set up a large-scale green hydrogen production plant in North-East England, generated with wind, water and solar energy, to boost Britain's shift away from fossil fuels.
HyGreen Teesside will deliver up to 500Mwe (megawatt electrical input) of green production, which is derived from renewable sources, by 2030, the British energy company says as it accelerates its transition to cleaner sources of energy.
The project will help to “transform Teesside into the UK’s green heart, strengthening its people, communities and businesses”, Louise Jacobsen Plutt, BP’s senior vice president for hydrogen and CCUS, said on Monday.
“Low-carbon hydrogen will be essential in decarbonising hard-to-abate industrial sectors including heavy transport,” she said.
BP first mapped out a strategy to scale back its fossil-fuel business in favour of greener alternatives last year. The UK is aiming for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Beyond solar and wind, London-listed BP wants to capture a 10 per cent share of “core” hydrogen markets over the next decade, as oil and gas majors invest heavily in the hydrogen business in the hope it could displace hydrocarbons in power generation, heavy industry and transportation, such as trucking and shipping.
The project will run alongside BP’s H2Teesside, a “blue” hydrogen project, which produces the fuel from natural gas. The two plants will have the potential to deliver 30 per cent of Britain's 2030 target for hydrogen production, BP said.
That will bolster the British government’s plan to target five gigawatts of low-carbon hydrogen production by 2030 to replace natural gas in powering around three million homes, as well as industry and transport.
Governments and energy companies are depending on clean hydrogen playing a leading role in efforts to lower greenhouse gas emissions but its future uses and costs remain uncertain.
A global coalition of industrial companies boosted hopes of reaching a target for emissions-cutting green hydrogen at the Cop26 climate talks, which concluded in Glasgow in November.
The HyGreen Teesside project will start production by 2025, with an initial phase of 60Mwe of installed hydrogen production capacity, as BP plans to work with industry and local government organisations such as Tees Valley Combined Authority to increase the pace of decarbonisation in transport.
The Teesside region is itself undergoing a redevelopment from its former life as a steel, chemical and fossil fuel centre. It was selected as one of two industrial clusters that will receive government support for a carbon capture project.
BP hopes the plant could fuel the development of Teesside into the UK’s first major hydrogen transport hub.
The company did not disclose the expected cost of the plant, which relies on receiving some government funding, and said a final decision was expected in 2023.
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Day 2, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Dinesh Chandimal has inherited a challenging job, after being made Sri Lanka’s Test captain. He responded in perfect fashion, with an easy-natured century against Pakistan. He brought up three figures with a majestic cover drive, which he just stood and admired.
Stat of the day – 33 It took 33 balls for Dilruwan Perera to get off the mark. His time on zero was eventful enough. The Sri Lankan No 7 was given out LBW twice, but managed to have both decisions overturned on review. The TV replays showed both times that he had inside edged the ball onto his pad.
The verdict In the two previous times these two sides have met in Abu Dhabi, the Tests have been drawn. The docile nature of proceedings so far makes that the likely outcome again this time, but both sides will be harbouring thoughts that they can force their way into a winning position.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier
UAE results
Beat China by 16 runs
Lost to Thailand by 10 wickets
Beat Nepal by five runs
Beat Hong Kong by eight wickets
Beat Malaysia by 34 runs
Standings (P, W, l, NR, points)
1. Thailand 5 4 0 1 9
2. UAE 5 4 1 0 8
3. Nepal 5 2 1 2 6
4. Hong Kong 5 2 2 1 5
5. Malaysia 5 1 4 0 2
6. China 5 0 5 0 0
Final
Thailand v UAE, Monday, 7am
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
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