Council officers have recommended that Bridgend Council withdraw its support for the proposed Hybont hydrogen demonstrator facility at Brynmenyn Industrial Estate.
BCBC would be one of the facility’s main customers. The plant is expected to fuel hydrogen-powered refuse vehicles, as well as hydrogen buses and HGVs. It would also provide heating for Ynysawdre Sports Centre, Brynmenyn Primary School and Coleg y Dderwen via a district heat network.
BCBC is currently set to sign a hydrogen supply agreement in early 2024.
The report – due to be discussed later today (pdf) – states that when the Welsh Government approached Bridgend Council to take part in the demonstrator project, there was no indication as to how much the contract would cost.
The Welsh Government is expected to contribute some of the capital funding needed to buy hydrogen refuse vehicles and install a district heat network, but BCBC would have to fund the rest (potentially up to £6million).
Also, officers estimate the project will cost BCBC an additional £525,000 in day-to-day spending over the next two financial years, which hasn’t been properly budgeted for.
The council can’t sign any contracts or take any work forward unless they find that money from somewhere. So officers have recommended – as a matter of due diligence – that the Cabinet withdraws from the memorandum of understanding signed with Marubeni in July 2022.
Could this mean the end of the Hybont project?
Short answer: No, but it would put it in serious doubt.
The planning application – which is/was due to be discussed at an extraordinary planning committee meeting (date tbc) – is a separate matter. Even if the Cabinet decides to pull out, that decision shouldn’t affect the planning issue.
An added complication is that the application has been “called in” by the Welsh Government, which means a final decision on whether Hybont receives planning permission is out of the council’s hands.
If Hybont is granted planning permission, it’s hard to see how it would be viable without its main customer.
All of this could be an attempt by Bridgend Council to pressure the Welsh Government (and/or Marubeni and the UK Government) to put up additional funding to cover the gap in BCBC’s finances.
If that’s the case, then this project is far from dead; it’s just a matter of reaching a new agreement.
If the Cabinet decides to press ahead anyway (which would be a rare over-ruling of officer recommendations), then that additional funding would have to be found from somewhere. BCBC have very little wriggle room given the current state of the council’s finances.
Update (20/09/23): BBC Wales has confirmed that Bridgend Council’s Cabinet has withdrawn its support for the Hybont project, subject to further talks.
