Vitol has appointed Jonathan Briggs as Project Director for its Humber Zero decarbonisation project at VPI Immingham, its 1.2GW combined heat and power plant (CHP) in North Lincolnshire.

The Humber Zero project is a hybrid carbon capture and storage (CCUS) and hydrogen CHP project which could swiftly decarbonise up to 5m/tCO2 per annum of the UK’s industrial activity in the Humber region, with the potential for further decarbonisation in the future. The project is fully aligned with the Humber Industrial Decarbonisation deployment project (Humber-DP1) through which twelve companies are working together on a decarbonisation strategy for the region, and have submitted a proposal to the UKRI as part of the UK government’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund program to deploy and support CCUS projects in the UK. VPI Immingham, Vitol’s Immingham CHP, is leading the southern Humber part of the project.

Jonathan joins Vitol from OGCI Climate Investments, an investment fund backed by 13 oil & gas companies with a £1.3 billion investment remit to identify and invest in technologies and businesses to mitigate climate change. He has 30 years’ experience in the energy sector, leading projects across upstream, LNG, hydrogen, power and CCUS, including BP’s initial CCS project at the North Sea’s Miller platform and the Don Valley Power.

Russell Hardy, Vitol Group CEO said: “Decarbonising existing industrial infrastructure is key to achieving the UK’s net-zero targets, whilst preserving skilled jobs and expertise. Furthermore, it would provide the foundations for a low-carbon industrial hub to bring new industries, sectors and jobs to the region.”

Jonathan Briggs, Project Director added: “I’m delighted to be leading Humber Zero at this exciting time. VPI sits at the heart of industry in the southern Humber, working with partners from across the area to deploy hydrogen and CCUS solutions, it can quickly contribute to reducing the UK’s CO2 emissions.”

Notes to editors

Humber-DP aims to deliver a low carbon industrial cluster by 2030 in the Humber. This will be achieved through a combination of a low carbon infrastructure, including CO2 transportation and storage and fuel switching to hydrogen.

About VPI

VPI Immingham is one of the cleanest and most efficient power plants in Europe. It is a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant near Immingham, on the South Bank of the river Humber in the UK. It can generate 1,240 megawatts – about 2.5% of UK peak electricity demand and up to 930 tonnes of steam per hour, which is used by nearby oil refineries.

At full capacity, it saves 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year, the equivalent emissions of one million cars, compared with a conventional coal plant.

About Vitol

Vitol is an energy and commodities company; its primary business is the trading and distribution of energy products globally – it trades 7.4 million barrels per day of crude oil and products and, at any time, has 250 ships transporting its cargoes.

Vitol’s clients include national oil companies, multinationals, leading industrial and chemical companies and the world’s largest airlines. Founded in Rotterdam in 1966, today Vitol serves clients from some 40 offices worldwide and is invested in energy assets globally including: circa 16mm3 of storage globally, 480kbpd of refining capacity and 6,500 service stations across Africa, Australia, Brazil, Eurasia and in Northwest Europe. Revenues in 2018 were $231 billion.