Hydrogen-powered plant to be allowed on roads

The government will allow hydrogen-powered diggers, mobile cranes and other construction machinery to operate on public roads.

Transport minister Lord Peter Hendy told Parliament that the Labour government would move ahead with the law change, which was first proposed in 2024 by the previous Conservative administration.

Hydrogen-powered non-road mobile machinery cannot currently be used on public roads unless their operator has obtained a special exemption.

According to a 2024 consultation, manufacturers highlighted this as a barrier to the wider uptake of low or zero-emission plant.

Hendy said the Department for Transport was developing an amendment to The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 to allow hydrogen machinery to drive on public roads across Great Britain.

“Legislation is expected to be introduced alongside publication of the government’s response to the public consultation in April,” he added.

Reacting to the announcement, Troy Aharonian, head of public affairs at trade association Hydrogen UK said: “We’re thrilled the government has confirmed they’ll be allowing hydrogen-powered machinery to be moved on UK roads.

“Hydrogen has a pivotal role to play in decarbonising industries like construction, which require off-grid power to operate heavy machinery that is ill-suited for electrification.

“This announcement is a positive step towards properly regulating hydrogen use and enabling the UK’s construction sector to achieve net zero.”

The Construction Equipment Association (CEA) was among those surveyed for their views on the issue prior to the public consultation.

Construction News has asked the CEA for its reaction to Lord Hendy’s announcement.

In a report this week, the Climate Change Committee – the government’s official advisory body on reducing emissions – said that by 2040 hydrogen would play a “small but important role” in moving away from carbon.

It singled out non-road mobile machinery as one of many subsectors where hydrogen would play a meaningful role in lowering industrial emissions, alongside chemicals, glass and other minerals, and iron and steel.

It added that electrification would deliver 52 per cent of the required reduction in emissions for non-road mobile machinery by 2050 “via both battery electric and tethered equipment”, and hydrogen would account for 22 per cent.