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The Shetlands are blessed with endless supplies of water and wind to generate electricty, but, unless you have huge banks of batteries, it cannot be stored.  This is where hydrogen steps up to the plate.  Rather than using the electricty directly, it can be used to produce hydrogen.  This hydrogen can then be used to create electricty on demand.

Now a project is kicking off that will create a housing development that will have a zero carbon footprint, which is claimed to have the world's first "unplugged hydrogen houses".  The project is being pioneered by the PURE (Promoting Unst Renewable Energy) Energy Centre and the Hjaltland Housing Association, and will be built in Eshaness in Northmavine.

The islands' position not only means that they have great natural resources, but also that traditional energy is very much more expensive than on the British mainland: diesel can cost up to £1.12 for a litre.

A recent energy balance study completed by the Unst Partnership Ltd found that over 50% of islanders spend more than 20% of their household income on energy. The majority of this was found to be in the form of energy for heating and transportation fuel.

The first stage of the housing project is to develop two super-efficient houses, which are being designed by Nick Brett of Richard Gibson Architects.

It is hoped that in the future, the hydrogen will also be used to power motor vehicles on the island.

Speaking to The Shetland News, Robin Sandison, HHA managing director, said:
"The association had been keen for many years to move into this new sector. It is incumbent on us to make our houses as efficient as we can. That means we make them efficient through passive means such as increasing insulation, but we also need to go for greater fuel efficiency.

"We have a lot of energy in Shetland that we are not making proper use of at all, and it always has been a bit of a dream of mine that we move in that direction, and now we have got the opportunity to do that."

At the heart of the hydrogen system is PURE's Hydrogen Production Module (HyPOD).  The HyPOD is a state-of-the-art alkaline electrolyser technology that can be combined with either Grid, Solar, Wind, Hydro, Wave and/or Tidal power to deliver reliable, high-pressure hydrogen production from a variable and intermittent energy source.