Ammar Ahmed Wafad, Making Industrial Decarbonisation Investable: Reflections from the ECR Net Zero Conference

In March 2026, I attended the ECR Net Zero Conference in Birmingham, where I presented my poster, “Techno-economic study of integrated wind hydrogen and combined heat and power microgrids for Teesside industrial net zero”. It was my first time presenting at a Supergen event, and the breadth of research in the room was one of the first things that struck me. I expected to spend most of the day talking about my own work, but found myself learning just as much from the research and perspectives of others.

My research develops a PyPSA-based techno-economic model of an integrated wind, hydrogen and combined heat and power system for an industrial site within the Teesside industrial cluster. The model brings electricity, hydrogen and heat together as one system and simulates how they interact over a full year. It also develops an Economic Viability Roadmap, showing how existing UK mechanisms, from hydrogen production support to capital funding, can close the gap between technical feasibility and investment. Although, the engineering may be feasible, but financing is where the case is hardest to make. Rather than assuming that new mechanisms are needed, the roadmap examines how existing support can be combined to make projects investable.

The conference quickly became a series of conversations with researchers, industry representatives and professionals working in energy and climate policy. Several discussions focused on the commercial side of the model, particularly private wire supply and how an integrated microgrid could be monetised to support the futuristic UK-centric policy development for industrial decarbonisation. These conversations made me think beyond the model itself and about how a system like this could actually work on an industrial site. Some of those conversations have continued since the conference.