Lord Callanan, Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, posted on X (formerly Twitter): "The government has reached a decision and we will not be proceeding with the hydrogen village trial in Redcar. I want to thank Redcar residents for their engagement. Also @JacobYoungMP and @BenHouchen for their fantastic local leadership."

This termination follows on from the cancellation of the other planned Hydrogen Village trial earlier this year in Whitby, Cheshire. This means both of the government's planned Hydrogen Village trials have now been scrapped.

As in Whitby, there was local public opposition to the plans proceeding, especially as residents would not be able to opt-out of being part of the trial.

In a written statement to the Commons, the Energy Secretary, Claire Coutinho, said that the proposed hydrogen village trial in Redcar couldn't go ahead as designed, as "the main source of hydrogen supply will not be available," so the government could no longer provide support for the trial.

She added: "The government still plans to take a decision in 2026 on whether, and if so how, hydrogen will contribute to heating decarbonisation. We will assess evidence from the neighbourhood trial in Fife, as well as similar schemes across Europe, to take this decision."