Northern Gas Networks has appointed Mott MacDonald to deliver front-end engineering design (FEED) work for the East Coast Hydrogen programme in its network area.
The appointment covers proposed infrastructure intended to support industrial decarbonisation across the Northeast and Yorkshire, including new and repurposed pipelines and associated above-ground facilities.
Network planned across five regions
East Coast Hydrogen is a collaboration between Northern Gas Networks, Cadent and National Gas. The programme aims to connect planned hydrogen production and storage facilities with industrial and commercial users through a large-scale transmission and distribution network.
The proposed network would extend across the Humber, Yorkshire, Teesside, South Tyneside and East Midlands. Within Northern Gas Networks’ area, the scope includes around 565km of planned pipelines: 285km of high-pressure, 77km of intermediate-pressure and 203km of medium-pressure assets. It also includes approximately 55 new or modified offtakes and pressure reduction stations.
Mott MacDonald will provide multidisciplinary engineering, safety, project management and digital delivery services as part of the FEED work.
Claudio Tassistro, Mott MacDonald’s managing director of energy for Europe, said: “This appointment is an important step in turning the East Coast Hydrogen ambition into a deliverable infrastructure programme.
“By combining deep pipeline engineering expertise with programme management and digital capability, we will help Northern Gas Networks understand what needs to be built, manage key risks and constraints and develop a robust design that can progress safely through approvals and future investment decisions.”
Programme backed by Ofgem funding
Ofgem confirmed £96m of funding, in 2025/26 prices, for the East Coast Hydrogen programme in July 2025. The funding is intended to support network design, the UK’s industrial decarbonisation strategy and initial transmission links between the Humber and Teesside industrial hubs.
WSP was appointed in July 2025 as FEED integrator for Project Union East Coast, leading a two-year design, environmental assessment and consenting process with specialist partners.
Northern Gas Networks subsequently began reviewing its pre-FEED design to refine connection points and rationalise the distribution network scope. The wider East Coast Hydrogen programme is intended to help decarbonise hard-to-abate industries by linking hydrogen supply to major industrial users.