Building work has begin on the 225kW wind power plant that will drive the inventive “hydrogen mini-grid” system in South Yorkshire. The system will provide power to the new Environmental Energy Technology Centre (EETC) between Rotherham and Sheffield.Supplementary power will be provided through a 30 kW hydrogen fuel cell system, where excess power from the wind turbine will top up the hydrogen in the fuel cells.

The system is claimed to be the largest wind-to-hydrogen power system in the UK. The storage of excess power as hydrogen has long been a Holy Grail in the green tech sector, and this development should prove an interesting proof of concept.

Work on the foundations for the turbine started on August 4, with Wigan firm Allenbuild preparing the site for delivery of the turbine from Danish manufacturers Vestas next month.

Danish firm Total Wind, which has its UK office in Llandudno, has been contracted to manage the transport, delivery and installation of the Vestas V29 wind turbine in the next few weeks.