Hydrogen plan for ex-power station going on show

Plans to build a green hydrogen plant on the site of a former oil-fired power station will go on show at a public exhibition later.

Fawley Power Station, on Southampton Water, was decommissioned in 2013 after more than 40 years in use.

The new project is the first to emerge since 2024, when plans to build 1,500 homes on the site were scrapped, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Hynamics, part of the EDF Energy group, hopes to start production in 2029, piping hydrogen fuel underground to the neighbouring ExxonMobil petrochemical complex and refinery.

The hydrogen producer said the 120MW plant could add up to £10m to the regional economy per year.

A digital visualisation on the firm's website showed where the plant would be built as seen from Calshot beach, although EDF Energy said the height of the building was not shown.

Fawley Parish Council said the site would employ 30-40 people, mainly technicians.

It said planning applications were expected in early 2026 with any construction starting in 2027.

The project would be on land owned by Fawley Waterside Ltd, which is revising further development plans after abandoning the housing proposal.

In April, the hydrogen scheme was shortlisted for financial support by the government.

Green hydrogen fuel - made by splitting water molecules - could cut ExxonMobil's carbon emissions by up to 100,000 tonnes a year, Hynamics said.

Green hydrogen projects have previously been welcomed by Friends of the Earth (FoE) UK, although FoE International has described all types of hydrogen energy as a "false solution" to global warming.

The public exhibition is being held at Jubilee Hall, Fawley, from 15:30 to 17:30 GMT.

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