Capacity (without redevelopment)
54bcf
Homes supplied
2.4 million
Off the east coast of England
29km
Rough is the UK’s largest natural gas storage facility, located in the Southern North Sea around 29 km off the east coast of England and connected to the onshore Easington gas terminal in East Yorkshire. It plays a role in the UK’s energy security by balancing seasonal gas supply and demand and providing resilience during periods of peak usage.
The current working gas storage capacity at Rough is up to 54 billion cubic feet (bcf), following phased investment and engineering upgrades. This means Rough provides more than 50 per cent of the UK’s total gas storage capacity, strengthening national energy resilience. At full capacity, the facility can store the equivalent volume of gas required to heat approximately 2.4 million homes over the winter period.
“Rough is not a silver bullet for energy security, but it plays a critical role in increasing capacity and supply confidence over the winter months.”
Chris O'Shea
Group Chief Executive of Centrica
Centrica acquired Rough and established Centrica Storage Ltd to operate the facility.
Gas storage operations were halted due to ageing infrastructure and the absence of a long-term regulatory support mechanism.
Following extensive safety inspections and engineering work, Rough partially reopened for gas storage to support UK energy security.
Subject to regulatory agreement, Rough is planned to play a role in long-duration energy storage, with potential future use for both natural gas and hydrogen.
Centrica’s long-term ambition is to transform Rough into Europe’s largest energy storage facility, capable of storing both natural gas and hydrogen.
This would involve a proposed investment of up to £2 billion, subject to an appropriate regulatory framework being agreed with the UK Government. This transformation will not only secure the UK’s energy supply but also unlock thousands of green jobs and support industrial decarbonisation.
Hydrogen storage will play a crucial role in the future energy system because it enables renewable energy to become reliable at scale.
As wind and solar power are intermittent, hydrogen allows surplus energy to be captured, stored and used later when generation is low, helping to balance supply and demand and stabilise the grid.
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