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That somehow a few widespread hydrogen production sites are going to match the more clustered hydrogen production in the north east and north west near industrial areas for first round storage support. The hope is that pipelines will be built by other gas network operators to the South Dorset site either to service Fawley Green Hydrogen's HAR2 120MW plant (SGN?) or connect to Hyline South West, the proposed connector between projects in the South West (St Austell Green Hydrogen, HAR2, 20MW to 60MW; Langage Green Hydrogen, HAR1, 7MW), which is currently in the feasibility stage (WWU) - and now Didcot 10MW (???). The Fawley and St Austell plants are already expecting to supply nearby industrial sites

The governments messaging has been consistent since the December 2023 HSBM Market Engagement, through HAR1 and HAR2 where the favoured areas are for hydrogen investment, to the 13 June 2025 government announcement about '£500m boost for hydrogen to create thousands of British jobs' that UKOG linked, possibly because of their desperate attempt to convince that their East Yorkshire ambitions are anything but wishful thinking. This from that June announcement:- 'This major infrastructure boost will help deliver clean energy while creating thousands of skilled jobs in industrial regions such as Merseyside, Teesside and the Humber, as well as in the supply chain.'

That has continued with the Project Union: East Coast support - this from NG ;- 'Ofgem confirmed £57m funding (in 25/26 pricing) for Project Union: East Coast for a 2-year Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) programme to carry out design, environmental assessment, consents and public consultation on proposals.' Whilst National Gas has provided an MOU to UKOG they are a partner in Humber Hydrogen where they are planning to jointly apply with Aldbrough developers SSE/Equinor for support in the transport and Storage first allocation round, from the Humber Hydrogen web site:- 'To achieve this, the network, through the Humber Hydrogen Pipeline (HHP) and Aldbrough Hydrogen Storage projects, will submit proposals under the UK Government’s Hydrogen Transport and Storage Business Model processes to determine where the first hydrogen network is built.'

I've just been reviewing the information I have on the Dorset sites and realise I'm only assuming that DEEP.KBB used Chickerell-1 as their 'type' well because it is the nearest well to the west of Weymouth that penetrates the salt. Whilst I would be surprised if they didn't I can't find any specific reference to it. I had remembered a presentation from July 2024 which showed an extract from the Portland-1 well illustrating the proposed cavern placement for that site.

ANT,

The crazy gang see that the SP has dropped 50% as a good thing because, presumably, there is a rule that it can't possibly fall further, and being able to buy millions of shares sounds good in a P&Ds.

Despite tradedesk apparently thinking that UKOG are brilliant at negotiating and are the only company capable of finding a site and engaging DEEP.KBB to produce the only possible cavern design in the basin (let's forget someone also created a design for the apparently poorer salt layer at Portland Port) - they're not. The design would have been produced using DEEP.KBBs knowledge based on public data available to anyone and the salt interval seen in Chickerell-1, and as UKOG have been coy about exactly where the site is which is fair enough (west of Weymouth) how near their site is that salt penetration?

Are you aware that August 2024 (nearly 2 years ago) was 5 months after UKOG mentioned in the 2023 ARA that they had 'identified' a siie in Dorset (and E Yorkshire) - and they also mentioned 'Success in this, or even a subsequent second allocation round' - so prepare for disappointment.

I found the timing of this announcement in the 2023 ARA that they were looking at a site in E Yorkshire and (at that time) another site in Dorset, having extolled the virtues of Portland Port, interesting as it was soon after the December 2023 'Hydrogen Storage Business Model: market engagement on the first allocation round' - this paragraph might have spooked UKOG:-

'This will especially be the case in industrial clusters which have a high concentration of likely demand alongside early access to hydrogen supply and infrastructure such as large-scale hydrogen storage. In the early years of the hydrogen economy, it is likely that most industrial demand for hydrogen will be located within these clusters where sites can share infrastructure, speeding up rollout and lowering costs.'

...and in all subsequent announcements the co location of hydrogen production (supply) and demand (industrial clusters) has been a continuing theme for updates on where storage is needed.

I thought you said they haven't signed the Dorset lease because 'No developer in their right mind signs a fully binding, high cost lease before a government funding framework is finalised.', not because of 'the commercial grind to turn that non-binding Heads of Terms into a binding, fully executed legal lease'.

Mind you they did spend about a million pounds leasing Portland Port.......and gave it up at a renewal point.

Yet they've spent who knows what on a site that apparently has a non binding agreement.....'the subsurface engineering work is 100% complete' or as UKOG put it 'has completed preliminary project design'.

Please stop BSing about how long and how difficult the process UKOG has gone through to find a site, it's embarrassing.

I can't think of one thing you've claimed about that that UKOG has said. The area of thick salt is extensive, if UKOG found a site someone else could - there's no exclusivity to access the salt layer and all we know about the surface location is it is west of Weymouth.

If it's that difficult perhaps there should be a warning about how impossible it's,going to be to find a site in E Yorkshire....

Erm - so why have you posted this:- 'A competitor cannot swoop in and sign over the exact same land'.

I posted - 'In Dorset the thick salt is fairly extensive so finding a site isn't restricted to being on top of the site UKOG have found - which from saying they were looking took UKOG about 5 months.' I've had a look at the Composite log for Down Barn about 10 km east of Chickerell the well UKOG used for their detailed salt stratigraphy and the salt is still thick.

..........there's no need to 'sign over exactly the same land'

But could you identify the source of this quote 'finalise the lease agreement' in regard to the South Dorset site - I often check quotes and can't find it in the 2026 interim or full year 2025 ARA.

as for this 'This is exactly how UKOG secured a defensible geographic moat without burning cash on premature rent' - yes I know - I just think the reason is two fold.

..........here's a post of mine from 26/6/26 about E Yorkshire:- 'On the other hand UKOG have their eyes on a field nearby they still haven't said they've leased - probably because they realise they have no chance in developing it and don't want to pay rent - even to fool punters like yourself (though maybe they will if things get desperate).'

and another 17/10/25 about Dorset and E Yorkshire:- 'though given how unlikely either site is to be awarded a first round allocation it seems a sensible move to avoid signing up either and having to pay for a lease they might never use'

as for 'The bar is set incredibly low here' - it's amazing how often UKOG manages to lower a low bar - have a look at the share chart.

Last post posted before it was finished.

continued....

5/5/26:- 'The Company is planning a further hydrogen storage project in East Yorkshire, located nearby to the existing SSE Thermal/Equinor Aldbrough gas storage site. Technical studies and land acquisition efforts moving forward..'

Not really sure if they have a specific site in mind - but their search area appears strictly limited with UKOG wanting to being near Aldbrough and near the proposed route of the Project Union East connecting to Aldbrough.

In Dorset the thick salt is fairly extensive so finding a site isn't restricted to being on top of the site UKOG have found - which from saying they were looking took UKOG about 5 months.

As for WWU Hyline Cymru is in advance planning now having been in gestation for a couple of years is expected to be commissioned in 2033 - and that only extends from Milford Haven to the Neath / Swansea area which is about half way along the South Wales coast, these two quotes are from the Hyline Cymru web page featuring surface storage:

'For most scenarios, there is a change in storage requirements from 2040 due to an increase in demand.'

'Industrial scenarios S2,S3 and S4 could be managed from a supply based on continuous production. Other scenarios are likely to depend on Project Union to access large-scale storage'

Hyline South West is still only in the feasibility stage . Not sure that WWU will get HYline South West done and build a connection to South Dorset - and the more advanced Hyline Cymru also won't be anywhere near England in 2033 let alone Hyline South West.

I was hoping you would agree to disagree - but you seem to have strayed into BS territory with this one:

'Securing legal option agreements for the precise surface footprints over a specific salt basin takes years.'

You mean like UKOG in Dorset 2/4/24:-UKEn has also identified further hydrogen storage sites, one in Dorset and one in East Yorkshire which we are also intending to pursue and secure Revenue Support for in future allocation rounds.....' Hmm -future allocations rounds....

then on 21/8/24 'has executed a heads of terms covering the 60-year lease of land and subsurface mineral rights for a second underground salt-cavern hydrogen storage facility in south Dorset'

Admittedly in E Yorkshire they still a[pear to not have tied down a site near Aldbrough they have described

then on 19/11/24:- 'The Placing's proceeds will firstly be employed to enable the acquisition of the Company's first salt cavern hydrogen storage site in the East Yorkshire salt basin'

1/10/25:- The Placing's proceeds were employed to enable the acquisition of the Company's first salt cavern hydrogen storage site in the East Yorkshire salt basin.

13/10/25:- UKEn has also identified further hydrogen storage sites, one in Dorset and one in East Yorkshire which we are also intending to pursue and secure Revenue Support for in future allocation rounds.

You have your opinion but mine appears to be in line with National Gas – and is probably the reason there’s no other companies interested in large scale storage for the first storage round in Dorset, if in time large scale storage becomes needed then others may take part.

The following could be summarised by there won’t be sufficient production and demand near term to support a large scale storage site and connections to the South West or Southampton, any advantage UKOG has will be lost when they don’t get selected in the first round.

Fawley Green Hydrogen are going have to manage a few years with only on-site storage if they hit their schedule of start in 2029 – I doubt there will be, by the early 2030’s, sufficient production and demand around Southampton to support a dedicated pipeline to UKOG’s potential storage site.

NG doesn’t hold a monopoly for building the grid, who said it did – I was pointing out the Project Union national grid would not be connecting South Wales and Southampton until after the East Coast network is built and that is an important consideration for any local grid – which will take years to plan and build and anyone laying a costly dedicated hydrogen pipeline would need certainty of significant demand straight away.

As for 'UKOG has already spent years securing............geological rights for its specific South Dorset site footprint.' The landowner agreed in the Heads of Terms to include the subsurface mineral rights but the permissions to drill to form caverns and store gas probably falls between the local minerals planning authority, the Crown Estate and the NSTA (and other agencies), if this isn't an issue for UKOG it won't be for anyone else in another round.

I was pointing out that despite a cavern storage site being already in existence at Aldbrough UKOG don't seem to think it's a problem to set up shop nearby - so even if 'UKOG holds the local spatial exclusivity required' - UKOG's area of spatial exclusivity is what – where the caverns are plus a bit, or zero until they have planning permission.

As for design it isn't some sort of secret that only UKOG know as they hired a consultancy to do it - so someone else, either has knowledge or can get a consultancy to do a 'preliminary' design for their site - there's also no secret as to the depth and thickness of the salt and where there are mudstone intervals with wells previously drilled across the Wessex Basin penetrating the salt layer - what they are probably all missing though is core - Portland-1 was cored through the salt - and the data from that well is released.

As for semantics I'm pretty sure scoping is closer to UKOG's 'preliminary' than 'The subsurface engineering work is 100% complete, the next engineering phase is the Front End Engineering Design (FEED).' - you can imagine what you like what 'preliminary' means, it makes no odds anyway, there will still be lots of work yet to do.

You've been busy, I'll reply to your posts in reverse order - first off......

Not sure that 'the signposting of "already identified" international projects provides a vital near term trading catalyst to keep the stock active' isn't the same as 'the AIM fallback of 'international opportunities' to fill what could be a very long wait'.

Let's be honest you will 'like' it, regardless of what the 'opportunity' is (and 'energy opportunity' could be many things), because "trading catalyst" = pump opportunity - and a raise opportunity for UKOG, though no doubt you'll miss that bit. Because of that there probably won't be an announcement before UKOG top up the EBT with 1.8 billion shares and then call a GM/AGM for authority to issue another 38 billion shares, or equivalent if they also consolidate.

Oops,

Just noticed an error - Hyline Cymru's completion is, of course, 2030 - 2032 not a few years ago.

Trade desk,

Interesting response - but essentially for South Dorset timing is the problem and I guess UKOG know this with proposals to find local scale storage and the AIM fallback of 'international opportunities' to fill what could be a very long wait for all the infrastructure needed to support a large scale hydrogen storage facility - possibly most important a connection to the national network that certainly isn't reaching the south by 2032.

My comments:-

Exxon Mobil - Fawley Green Hydrogen, near the Exxon Mobil refinery is already expecting to supply Exxon Mobil - they were shortlisted in HAR2.

When will the 'gigawatts of English Channel offshore wind power will hit the grid' and of course that's the electricity grid, and how does that compare with the Irish Sea where there are already windfarms, and there are more advanced storage and production proposals in the NW to supply demand in the NW.

Who is suggesting that when demand occurs you turn up and drill, there will be years to prepare a proposal, UKOG have used a well previously drilled near the surface site UKOG has secured, but have they got Crown Estate permission for access to the salt in the environs of their site, for instance? If UKOG can secure a site why would anyone else not be able to get a site somewhere in the 'prime part' of the salt basin - if there was exclusive access to a salt layer how can UKOG contemplate a site near the established Aldbrough cavern gas storage site?

You claimed that 'the subsurface engineering work is 100% complete' when UKOG describe it as 'preliminary project design' - scoping seems a fairer description than 100% complete - it isn't ready for an application.

When will the Hyline South West be built, currently a feasibility study is underway, meanwhile WWU are advancing Hyline Cymru (completion 2020-2022) which connects across South Wales from Milford Haven to the Neath and Swansea area - around where Project Union should eventually connect to South Wales.

This about Project Union from NG:-

Stage 1 (‘East Coast / Scotland / North West / Grangemouth-Teesside’): The first stage includes the East Coast, North West, Scotland and Grangemouth-Teesside sections, where the plans for hydrogen production and demand appear to be more advanced. These sections are likely to be most

suitable for early prioritisation for ‘gas on’.

Stage 2 (‘Bacton / South East / Southern / Midlands / Wales’): Following the deployment of the first stage, other sections (i.e. the Bacton, South East, Southern, Midlands and Wales sections) could follow. Their review of the existing evidence suggests that plans for hydrogen production and demand are less developed for sections in this second stage.'

Not just me then -'plans for hydrogen production and demand are less developed for sections in this second stage'.

TH2,

any chance that you can point out within this excerpt from Hansard for 13/3/2025 where the soon to be ex-PM comments that he is 'fully aware of the Dorset Hydrogen storage project'?

PM: 'My hon. Friend is absolutely right about making Britain a clean energy superpower. We are committing £2.3 billion to support hydrogen projects, and I recognise the huge potential of South Dorset to become home to a storage hub. We are ensuring that public and private investment work together, which is exactly what the Crown Estate Act 2025 does, unlocking significant investment, boosting offshore wind and kickstarting economic growth.'

Not 'the' Hydrogen storage project' - 'a' storage hub - seems more interested in getting the government general support figures and facts out.

Not sure the King of the North will be wanting Ed to commit funds to possible revenue support for a storage project I suspect even UKOG realises won't be needed until long after 2032.

Trade Desk,

the NG MOU may include mention of both sites but specifics are not known apart from what UKOG RNS'd, with E Yorkshire identified as the initial focus in the RNS of 21/11/2025 'This new work will be complementary to the collaboration with National Gas (see RNS 1st October 2025), which initially focusses on UKEn's Yorkshire storage opportunity.'). But the MOU realistically only works for the E Yorkshire site as Project Union is only going to be connecting up the Humber Cluster to the East coast by 2032 - storage sites selected for government support are expected to be operational by then:- 'Project Union's first phase, scheduled for operation by 2032, aims to connect the East Coast hydrogen cluster (Teesside to Humberside) with an envisaged routing to connect with UKEn's East Yorkshire hydrogen storage project' although it's a bit rich to claim the routing is to UKOG's site when the route is to the SSE/Equinor site.

Maybe if someone could identify these numerous at scale hydrogen projects in the south, production and demand, that would require large scale storage - however as some have pointed out UKOG appears to be trying to identify where local small scale storage might be required which won't fit the parameters for an application in the first transport and storage round, presumably because UKOG has realised there won't be the demand for large scale storage in the timeframe of the first allocation round.

This is almost certainly the reason there's no local competition - the salt layers aren't licensed like oil exploration and production so there's no exclusivity for UKOG (or anyone else) across the area the salt underlies, when supply and demand need storage in Dorset competition will probably emerge.

As for WWU, Project Union is planned to connected to South Wales from the north east.

UKOG haven't claimed the Deep.KBB designs are anything but scoping (2026 interim 29/6/2026: 'DEEP.KBB GmbH, one of Europe's leading salt cavern design and underground energy storage engineering groups, completed preliminary project design') for a site that UKOG have yet to claim they have leased. Because of cost final design won't be commissioned before it's clear UKOG might be able to apply for the South Dorset site.

As for 'The moment DESNZ places South Dorset on the official government revenue shortlist' - in the unlikely event that happens it won't be until some time (hopefully) in 2027 - the round's relaunch will be followed by market engagement before the application stage is opened which will be months - then review of applications and discussions with those that passed the application criteria. Then those selected will negotiate the revenue support contract - the HAR2 hydrogen round appears to be stalled at this point with the 27 projects were shortlisted in April 2025.

Daniel,

it takes a while for reality to bite and UKOG expectations fail to happen, the same goes for those extolling the virtues of a UKOG plan - will they still be posting after the first pump? Hundreds of posts from many new, or newish, names then the disappearance phase, with a few impaled on the spike unable to acknowledge it was all just a dream.

Thinking the NG MOU will save UKOG in E Yorkshire when NG are embedded in Humber Hydrogen with SSE/Equinor and Centrica - and planning to apply together in the first Transport and Storage round Project Union connecting Aldbrough Gas storage with hydrogen production and demand - is why the pump on the NG MOU was predictably just a dream, and UKOG took ruthless advantage of those dreaming, raising at a discount 3 times immediately.

PS Cash (<£2mm) almost certainly doesn't equal mcap (ca £3mm), the sale to EnergyB is yet to happen, and I've been around long enough to remember the last sale of part of HH to PPP (another ex DL vehicle, suspended since 1/8/2024 following shenanigans in the US) falling through, not saying it will but the NSTA may be wary of a low budget company taking on a high profile contentious oil field .

Retec,

Those ca12 million shares are now ca1.2 million. Cost £12,000, worth ca£120 - a 99% drop (or for Trump 9,900% drop).

But I'm sure SS doesn't care as, in the unlikely event of a success, he will probably be awarded a share of the 1.8 billion EBT shares (likely soon 3.6billion) bought by the company - why take the risk of buying.

Daniel,

looking back demonstrates a recurring behaviour from UKOG - hype/fail - and expecting a pump and dump also depends on that past behaviour being repeated. Understanding this is certainly no more than 'no sh*t sherlock' - but of course would help in longer term investment if the projects looked likely to succeed.

So looking forward and helps predict failure or not - looking at the risks vs likely reward - which is often massive risks but ultimately zero reward for the company as the raises are spent, but can be considerable for 'investors' who exit at the right time, and hasn't been bad for the BoD, especially SS who only bought shares when threatened with possible removal. Since then they appear to have realised that they could use the EBT to not only stock up their possible rewards in success (1.8billion shares currently - awaiting a doubling from another EBT share subscription) at no cost to them, but also practically guaranteeing GM/AGM resolutions get passed so reduce the threat of removal.

It is of course opinion but in mine I can't see either hydrogen site being awarded government support as neither is needed for the early 2030's, either because there would be no significant demand for storage on the south coast, or that there's an already existing storage site at Aldbrough in E Yorkshire for natural gas with plans in proghress for extension for hydrogen. This doesn't mean that UKOG won't hype their 'potential' sites / applications - and based on past activity this will set the stage for a pump - but without a government announcement likely soon suspect something international is what UKOG has come up with for news flow - also backup if the government announcement re hydrogen is detailed enough to instantly realise UKOG stands no chance.

Daniel,

'Exiting the 'going nowhere' uk oil assets leaves the company to focus on the better in vogue assets'

So when UKOG have consistently claimed, up until they sold HH for £1,000,000, it was going to fund their hydrogen ambitions they were wrong - of course they were.

5 June 2026:-'On resumption of its profitable production operations the company will assess the future opportunities for Horse Hill, including further production development, from which valuable revenue generation can support the company’s transition to clean energy.'

As so far, for any completed project, they've been wrong, even the first site they were going to turn into hydrogen storage after shelling out about a million in lease costs, what are they now wrong about - that either of 'the better' potential hydrogen sites have any chance of being chosen - but of course traders don't care about success, despite constantly making claims how great everything is, as long as at some point the company hypes the chance of success and there are sufficient punters to fall for the resultant pump.

Of course that's what traders do - and in the past I've bought and then sold on spikes - what I don't like is the disingenuous pretence of belief the company will be successful beyond the pump, encouraging others to buy up to the moment they sell, and then nothing.

You may believe that exploration is just luck - only to some extent - sometimes the information available clearly points to failure, and these are the 'opportunities' that poorly funded AIM companies get, often carefully choosing what information they pass on through RNS to polish the t**d. From HH, through BB to Turkey and Loxley - and on the evidence available that continues - NG signed a MOU with UKOG initially for the E Yorkshire site, it's hyped there's a spike, UKOG raise to pay bills they had delayed paying, and many posting then disappeared fast, the SP drops. NG have now formed Humber Hydrogen with UKOG's competition (though suggesting UKOG are realistically in the race would be like expecting Cadillac to win this seasons F1 championship) with a stated aim for them to submit a joint bid with SSE/ Equinor in the transport and storage allocation round.

What's always been strange is that something completely unknown is so attractive compared to something UKOG claimed up until they sold it was such an important part of their portfolio.

5 June 2026:-

'On resumption of its profitable production operations the company will assess the future opportunities for Horse Hill, including further production development, from which valuable revenue generation can support the company’s transition to clean energy.'

International opportunities are great for a company to BS about especially if it's difficult to find out anything apart from what the company claims.

An example: It took about six months to unearth specific information about the oil field in Turkey adjacent to and described as a lookalike to the proposed target of Basur-3 by UKOG. The deal was described as transformational with (unjustified) comparisons made to huge fields in Kurdistan. A well on the lookalike field was described as having an initial flow rate of 2000 bopd but production data showed significantly lower initial production levels with faster decline than HH and supposed on field dry wells - predictably this was essentially the result of UKOG's first well supposedly testing an up dip part of the Basur field. The follow up Pinarova well was even more ridiculous and UKOG exited Turkey having wasted a few million quid. An outcome often repeated by AIM companies pursuig international opportunities.

TH2 Translator:

'We're one government announcement, that clearly didn't happen as hoped in the 8 months they claimed it would happen when they previously failed to do it, away from an opportunity for UKOG to hype their usual fantasy hopes of success where the reality is more likely abject failure.'

More hype so TH2 can sell like BB, HH, Markwells Wood, Arreton, Loxley, Turkey and probably a few others.

With the change in leadership and priorities with current departmental budget and plans under scrutiny and parliament going into recess from mid July to September it's now unlikely the transport and storage round is going to be launched until Q4 2026 - again reducing the time from awards, which could be a year later, to the storage site needing to be operational.

Companies already in advanced planning in areas with expected hydrogen production and demand and with demonstrably strong balance sheets will be better placed to make a winning application than UKOG who have little cash and the status of their potential sites unknown.

TH2,

Whilst I doubt that UKOG will be a realistic participant in the first transport and storage round isn't the £2 billion the gross value added to the economy - not annual revenue of the storage site? - and of course revenue is different from profit where the quid pro quo of support is a cap to profit, and is it really likely UKOG will have a significant % of the project if an investee stumps up £800,000,000.

With the Humber hydrogen storage sewn up between SSE/Equinor/Centrica/NG UKOG's only hope would be the south coast proposed site, but it seems improbable that storage would be viable (and I doubt government would want to subsidise the facility for years - or possibly forever) for the early 2030's as there will be no national grid to transport hydrogen from production to the south coast storage and from the south coast storage to industrial demand centres, neither production nor demand is going to be significant locally for some time.