Gravitricity is seeking up to £40m (€45m) in funding following signing a memorandum of understanding with construction firm VSL Systems UK to design underground hydrogen stores, known as FlexiStores.
The UK could see the construction of hundreds of purpose-built underground line rock shafts to store green hydrogen. These will each be 6m in diameter and 356m deep and lined with steel.
The aim is that FlexiStores will help to fuel the UK’s green economy. Each store will hold up to 100 tonnes of green hydrogen – enough to refuel more than 1,000 HGVS, or to power 500 buses for a week. Gravitricity calculates that the construction of 1,000 FlexiStores would meet a quarter of the UK government’s predicted 2050 hydrogen storage needs.
Gravitricity and VSL Systems plan to build a scale demonstrator in the next 24 months ahead of commercial rollout.
