Hydrogen opportunity

Hydrogen has a crucial part to play in Scotland’s energy transition mission – providing a clean, flexible and innovative solution to decarbonise industries, transport, and energy systems. It also helps us fully capitalise on our renewable energy resources. The Scottish Government’s Hydrogen Action Planopens in a new window outlines Scotland’s hydrogen ambitions.

This means that there are many economic opportunities for your business, including opportunities in:

• Hydrogen production
• Distribution
• Storage
• Transport
• Chemical feedstocks
• International exports

With world-class renewable resources, expertise in energy innovation, a strong industrial base, and a growing pipeline of projects, Scotland offers opportunities across the hydrogen value chain. 

Whether you’re already active in hydrogen or exploring how your capabilities could transfer, we can help you identify opportunities, connect with partners and move from ambition to delivery. 

Scotland’s hydrogen project pipeline continues to grow, underpinned by strong renewable energy resources and established energy and industrial infrastructure. Together, these assets create opportunities to scale hydrogen production and integrate it into Scotland’s wider energy system.

Hydrogen assets map

Our map of Scotland’s hydrogen assets shows where hydrogen production, distribution and end use could take place. If you're a developer, investor or supply chain company, it'll help you understand how projects may connect across regions. 

It also shows where potential hydrogen offtakers are emerging – including industrial users, transport applications and energy system customers – supporting early-market development and long-term demand.

Explore Scotland's hydrogen assets map on ArcGISopens in a new window 

Hydrogen reports

Read our report on hydrogen demand in Scotland – it shows how heavy industry, commercial sites, and transport sectors could use hydrogen to decarbonise their energy and fuel needs.

Explore our report that looks at how hydrogen can support Scotch whisky distilleries' ambitions to become more sustainable. This study helped to simplify the type of hydrogen projects distilleries may consider, including requirements and costs.  

We also have two reports that explore the potential to produce green hydrogen all across Scotland. They highlight a range of sites where land, power and water requirements make the production of green hydrogen a possibility. 

Read our study on de-centralised green hydrogen production 

Read our large-scale study on hydrogen production and export locations 
 

We're working to accelerate the delivery of hydrogen opportunities. But we're also working to maximise Scottish supply chain content across hydrogen projects.

It's key that Scottish companies gain early experience to maintain their competitive edge and prove their capabilities.

Scotland has over 270 companies that have actively been involved in hydrogen projects. Hydrogen is a new territory for most of the supply chain. If you're a Scottish company, we can work with you to help you understand where your product or service fits into a project.

Download our end-to-end supply chain mapping study (PDF, 1.69 MB) opens in a new window – it sets out the supply chain requirements for electrolytic hydrogen projects at different scales. It shows where products, services and skills are needed. If you're a supplier, it'll help you understand where the opportunities lie as Scotland’s hydrogen sector develops. 

The Scottish Government-commissioned Assessment of Electrolysers reportopens in a new window sets out the global state of electrolyser manufacturing. It shows how Scotland can strengthen its supply chain, with Scottish Enterprise helping connect project developers to relevant Scottish products and services. 

Hydrogen infrastructure factsheets 

We've also commissioned a series of factsheets that describe in detail the components needed to build key pieces of hydrogen infrastructure. If you're a Scottish supplier, they can help you identify specific opportunities in the hydrogen supply chain.

The factsheets will help your company to identify which of your existing products and services could be used directly for – or adapted to fit – hydrogen technologies.

View our hydrogen factsheets 

The Scottish hydrogen innovation ecosystem is growing at a fast pace. Scotland's Hydrogen Innovation Network (SHINe) will help you access the wide range of hydrogen innovation resources available. It also provides guidance on innovation funding opportunities and assets. 

SHINe aims to speed up innovation in Scotland, strengthen hydrogen capabilities and help companies in the sector build lasting partnerships.

Explore the Hydrogen Innovation Network 

CCUS offers a significant opportunity for Scotland to enhance its industrial base, create jobs, and reduce emissions. By leveraging existing capabilities, Scotland can establish itself as a key player in the global transition to a low-carbon economy.

CCUS technology is recognised globally as essential for reducing emissions from hard-to-abate industries such as power generation, chemicals, and materials manufacturing. With substantial governmental investment earmarked for developing major CCUS clusters in the UK, Scotland is uniquely positioned to leverage its existing industrial base and expertise in oil and gas for the emerging CCUS sector.

Scotland has a significant opportunity to deploy CCUS due to its vast CO2 storage potential and the option to repurpose existing oil and gas infrastructure for CO2 transport and storage. Scottish companies are actively exploring CCUS opportunities, with many already providing critical products and services across the CCUS supply chain, from capture and transportation to storage. 

There's an emerging opportunity in carbon capture and utilisation to support the development of alternative fuels production in Scotland as well as potential to support circular manufacturing – including low-carbon chemicals manufacturing. 

Read our report on the CCUS supply chain in Scotland – it explores the critical role of CCUS in supporting Scotland's transition to a net-zero economy by 2045. It also shows key opportunities, challenges, and strategic recommendations to optimise Scotland's involvement in the emerging global CCUS market.  

Growing global and UK mandates for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) are creating a significant market opportunity for hydrogen derived fuels. Similar regulatory mechanisms are also emerging across other transport modes, including maritime, reinforcing the role of hydrogen derivatives in long term decarbonisation. Against this backdrop, Scotland is well positioned to play a leading role in SAF and alternative fuel production.

SAF and other alternative fuels also enable the use of captured carbon, supporting Scotland’s ambitions in CCUS and the wider bioeconomy. Scotland benefits from strong access to biogenic CO₂ through biomass rich sectors such as forestry, agriculture, distilling, brewing and paper milling. 

Additionally, anchoring SAF production in Scotland could open up export opportunities. Scottish supply chain companies are already exporting capabilities into CCUS and alternative fuel projects internationally. Establishing domestic SAF production could create a strong local market, deepen supply chain capability, and position Scotland to capture future export growth across hydrogen, CCUS and low carbon fuels.

Read our report on synthetic/sustainable aviation fuel – it shows the global and Scottish market opportunities for SAF and assesses the country’s strengths and appetite to engage in zero-emission aviation.

Grangemouth is Scotland’s largest industrial site and is central to the country’s future hydrogen plans. It's the site of the largest Scottish green hydrogen production project, and it's on the shortlist for funding via the UK Government’s Hydrogen Production Business Model programme. 

In the future, it could become the location for Scotland’s first large-scale SAF production site. Grangemouth makes use of existing industrial land, offshore wind power, biogenic CO₂, hydrogen and has strong links to offtakers.

The Industrial Cluster Strategy highlights hydrogen and CCUS as core enablers for Grangemouth’s transition to be a globally competitive, low-carbon manufacturing and net zero industrial cluster by 2045.

Find out more about the Grangemouth opportunity  

We help Scottish hydrogen, CCUS and alternative fuel companies access global markets as demand grows. Our trade and export support can help you identify hydrogen-related export opportunities, access international markets, and build relationships with global developers, OEMs and investors. 

Explore our exports and international markets support 

We also support international companies to invest, locate and scale hydrogen, CCUS and alternative fuel production activity in Scotland. We help inward investors understand Scotland’s energy transition opportunity. From project pipelines and supply chain capability, to sites, skills and incentives – we connect them to the right partners and locations. 

Learn more about energy transition opportunities in Scotlandopens in a new window on the SDI website.