Hydrogen, Fuel Cell, and Carbon Abatement Technologies Demonstration Programme (HFCCAT)
The Hydrogen and Fuel Cell (H, FC) and Carbon Abatement Technologies (CAT) Demonstration Scheme is designed to address two of the Government’s key energy priorities set out in the 2007 Energy white paper: meeting the energy challenge - cost competitive carbon emission reductions, and increased security of supply. The Government is committed to increasing the deployment of renewable energy in the UK, but fossil fuels are likely to be used for many years to come, both here and abroad, with the rapidly growing energy demand of the developing countries representing a significant pressure.
The demonstration programme includes a number of technologies which, alone or in combination, have the potential to contribute to reduced carbon emissions while utilising fossil fuels. Some also have the capability to be deployed in conjunction with renewable and other low-carbon energy sources. What they have in common is that they are relatively untried. The lack of field experience and real operating data with these technologies constitutes a barrier to deployment. It is that barrier which this programme addresses.
The total budget for this scheme is £50m. £35m is allocated for carbon abatement technologies; and £15m is allocated for fuel cell and/or hydrogen technologies.
The specific objectives of the scheme are:
- To construct and install systems demonstrating: hydrogen; fuel cell; carbon abatement technologies (CAT), or combinations of these technologies
- To operate these systems (or components) for a sufficient period under conditions representative of those that would be experienced in commercial deployment
- To generate and publish sufficient data on operational performance of these systems for potential users to make investment decisions (market feed - forward)
- To identify the needs for further research and development and design improvements (R&D feedback)
Project proposals will be judged on their merits against the criteria outlined in the scheme description.
Key information such as the scheme description, contact details for applicants, and faq’s can be found on the Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Carbon Abatement Technologies Demonstration Programme website.