14 December 2022: Vertex Hydrogen is delighted to announce the signing of a ‘Heads of Terms’ offtake agreement for 300+ megawatts of low carbon hydrogen with Encirc.
Encirc, part of the Vidrala Group, is a leading container glass manufacturer – responsible for approximately a third of the containers made for the UK and Republic of Ireland markets – around 3 billion each year.
Encirc has announced its plan to build a new ultra-low carbon furnace on its Cheshire site. The furnace will be fuelled by an energy mix of green electricity and low carbon hydrogen.
The hydrogen will be supplied by Vertex Hydrogen, as part of the HyNet low carbon industrial cluster. The furnace will be operational by 2027, and Encirc is aiming to be the first in the world to produce net zero glass bottles at scale by 2030.
Joe Seifert, CEO of Vertex Hydrogen said: “Glass bottles are an everyday and highly recyclable product we all use. We are delighted to be powering our neighbours Encirc who, along with Diageo, are leading the charge in decarbonising the drinks industry.”
Adrian Curry, Managing Director of Encirc said: “This partnership with Vertex Hydrogen will help us to change the face of glass as we aim to produce Net Zero bottles by 2030. Glass is an incredible material and sustainable in so many ways. It has been around since 3500 BC, and by using hydrogen to decarbonise it, we believe it will be the packaging choice for centuries to come.”
Vertex is proud to be helping the UK lead the development of low carbon hydrogen production as an integral part of HyNet – the UK’s leading industrial decarbonisation cluster. It will help to solve our urgent need to drastically reduce carbon emissions in our manufacturing sector – securing and growing vital industry.
Vertex is:
- Delivering an initial 1,000 megawatts of low carbon hydrogen capacity – enough to provide the fuel consumed by a city the size of Liverpool;
- Capturing 1.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year at full capacity – equivalent to taking 750,000 cars off the roads;
- Investing around £1 billion in the North West of the UK and facilitating the investment of a further £1 billion or more of associated infrastructure;
- Playing a leading role in kickstarting the UK low carbon, large scale hydrogen market.
ENDS
Media contacts
Amy Bodey, Head of Communications, Progressive Energy: amy.bodey@progressive-energy.com +447754 852979
Michelle Lewis, Director of Corporate Affairs, Essar Oil UK: michelle.lewis@essaroil.co.uk +447805 85416
About Vertex Hydrogen
Vertex Hydrogen is a leading player in the energy transition which is developing the first large scale, low carbon hydrogen production hub in the UK. This will produce (in its initial phases) 1GW of hydrogen capacity (enough to power a city like Liverpool) and capture some 1.8 million tonnes of carbon per annum (equivalent to taking 750,000 cars off the roads).
By 2030, Vertex expect to deliver nearly 4GW of low carbon hydrogen – 40% of the UK Government’s national target. The organisation is investing an expected £1bn in the UK’s largest industrial region (the North-West) to enable businesses to switch from fossil fuels to low carbon energy, helping to secure and grow vital industries and jobs and unlocking billions of pounds of related investment.
An integral part of HyNet, one of two of the UK Government’s Track 1 clusters for industrial decarbonisation that was included in the UK Government’s Plan for Growth, Vertex has been selected as one of four hydrogen projects to proceed to the due diligence phase in the Phase-2 Cluster Sequencing Process by the UK Government.
About Encirc
Encirc, part of the Vidrala group, is a market leader in glass container design, manufacturing, bottling and logistics solutions for the UK, Irish and European food and beverages industries.
With over 1,750 employees, it operates from its three purpose-built sites in Derrylin, Co Fermanagh, Elton, Cheshire and Corsico, Italy, the company produces more than 4 billion glass bottles and other containers annually, and can fill up to 250 million litres of bulk shipped beverages every year.
Vidrala has some of the most ambitious sustainability plans in the world, with its science based targets validated at below 1.5°C and the only Glass manufacturer to make a Net Zero pledge. Part of the decarbonisation roadmap to achieving this includes halving scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030, with Net Zero bottles created by 2030 as part of that process.
