Energy Unplugged by Aurora EP.260 Lawson Steele on Hydrogen, Storage Solutions and Decarbonising the UK Grid
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Oct 21, 2025 This week, Lawson Steele, CEO of Haldane Energy and a renewable energy veteran, discusses the game-changing role of hydrogen in long-duration energy storage. He explains how hydrogen can replace aging gas-fired power plants and its high energy density advantages over batteries. Lawson delves into the design of closed-loop hydrogen systems and the geographic constraints of utilizing salt caverns in the UK. He also addresses the importance of government support in making hydrogen commercially viable for a sustainable energy future.
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Founding Path To Haldane Energy
- Lawson founded Bute Energy and GreenGen Cymru before creating Haldane Energy to address transmission and storage gaps.
- He pivoted from accounting and real estate into renewables and infrastructure development over a decade.
Hydrogen's Energy-Dense Advantage
- Hydrogen offers the highest energy-per-power ratio, making it the most scalable option for large-volume long-duration storage.
- Haldane views hydrogen as essential to capture oversupplied renewable energy and replace ageing gas plants cost-effectively.
Tens of TWh Will Drive Storage Needs
- Haldane estimates 20–30 TWh of oversupplied renewable energy in the mid-2030s that could otherwise be wasted.
- Large energy density needs mean batteries and pumped hydro struggle to economically absorb that volume compared with hydrogen.