Utility company National Grid on Tuesday announced it has launched a path to what it says is a more affordable, reliable clean energy future that enables customer choice and combats the increasing threats of climate change.

With National Grid’s Clean Energy Vision: A fossil-free future for cleanly heating homes and businesses, the company will seek to eliminate fossil fuel from its gas networks, replacing it with renewable natural gas and green hydrogen, while also maximizing energy efficiency and helping customers electrify their heat, if they so choose, in targeted areas.

“This fossil-free vision is an historic announcement for National Grid and the United States,” said John Pettigrew, chief executive officer of National Grid. “We have a critical responsibility to lead the clean energy transition for our customers and communities. Just as we are investing in renewables like wind and solar to decarbonize the energy running through our electric network, we are committing to decarbonize our gas network by transitioning it completely to renewable natural gas and hydrogen by 2050 or sooner.”

National Grid acknowledges that Massachusetts and New York have ongoing public proceedings to help guide implementation of the critical plans needed to fight climate change. The company is actively participating in those proceedings and “will continue to engage in the public feedback sessions for our states’ climate action plans, highlighting the benefits of our fossil-free vision for all residents and businesses.”

“Fighting climate change requires significant greenhouse gas emissions reductions across the board,” the utility company’s announcement said, adding that “National Grid is tackling those reductions across the power sector, the transportation sector and – with this vision – the building heat sector, which is responsible for nearly 40% of emissions in Massachusetts and New York.”

Combined with targeted electrification and enhanced energy efficiency, a 100% fossil-free gas network can deliver a clean energy future that is more affordable and more reliable to over 20 million people across New York and Massachusetts, the company said.

“National Grid’s fossil-free vision will not only achieve a net zero energy future, and achieve the climate goals of the states in which we operate, but it will also provide additional, affordable clean energy choices so no customer or community is left behind on our clean energy transition,” the announcement said.

Among the elements of the proposal include the following, the company said:

-Affordable Pathway to Net Zero: Avoids costly and premature equipment upgrades for homes and businesses;

-Adds Clean Energy Choices: Customers can choose whether to fully electrify or continue using the gas network, which would be fueled by new, fossil-free energy;

-Protects Good Jobs: Protects thousands of union jobs for uniquely skilled workers;

-Improves Reliability and Resiliency: Provides added reliability and resiliency through diversification of clean energy sources; and

-Cost-Efficient: Utilizes existing infrastructure, making it more cost-efficient for customers, and continues to utilize our highly skilled workforce.

The announcement comes on the heels of National Grid’s successful award of an offshore wind lease in the New York Bight in its joint venture with RWE, and an announcement of HyGrid, one of the first green hydrogen projects for blending hydrogen into homes in the US.

Renewable natural gas (RNG) is an immediately available resource released into the atmosphere by decomposing materials at farms, landfills, wastewater, and other sources, the National Grid announcement said.

RNG provides a double benefit as greenhouse gas can be captured before being released and therefore before it impacts our climate. RNG can be harnessed and purified to flow through existing infrastructure in place of natural gas, which is a fossil-fuel, the announcement said.

“National Grid continues to lead our nation in offshore wind development, and these assets can be used to develop hydrogen through the process of electrolysis. Because the only byproduct of this production process is water vapor, the hydrogen produced is carbon-free,” the announcement said.

“Hydrogen is particularly valuable because it can be stored for future use when conditions are such that our wind or solar assets are not producing high levels of power,” the company added. “This is a fossil-free way to decarbonize multiple sectors including heat, power generation, and transportation.”

For more information on National Grid’s Clean Energy Vision, go online to www.nationalgrid.com/fossilfree.

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