National Highways is rolling out a fleet of zero-emissions construction equipment on the Lower Thames Crossing in its goal to make it the UK’s first carbon neutral major infrastructure project.
Early work on the project, which includes a 4.2km twin-bore tunnel under the River Thames, began in March and is being carried out only using electric, HVO and hydrogen-powered equipment and machinery.
Diesel has been prohibited from Lower Thames Crossing construction sites since 2025.
More than 30 zero-emissions machines are working on sites across Kent and Essex and the fleet is expected to grow to around 150 by peak construction in 2028. The Construction Equipment Association predicts it will be one of the largest deployments of zero emission equipment for an infrastructure project in the world.
Machines currently at work include 20-tonne excavators, rollers, tractors, telehandlers and hydrogen generators.
British firm GeoPura is supplying the hydrogen for the project and has built a production facility at the Port of Tilbury. Work at the northern tunnel portal site is being completely powered by hydrogen.
The 23km road project east of London aims to ease congestion at Dartford by almost doubling road capacity across the Thames east of London. The tunnel will be the UK’s longest road tunnel and one of the world’s largest-diameter tunnels.
The tunnel is being delivered by Bouygues Travaux Publics Murphy Joint Venture and Herrenknecht will supply the 16.4m-diameter variable density TBM – the largest the company has ever built.
Tunnel boring is scheduled to commence in 2028 from the Port of Tilbury near Thurrock and the road is due to open in early to mid-2030s.
Lower Thames Crossing CEO Matt Palmer said the project was cutting carbon on a new scale in the ambition to make the Lower Thames Crossing “the greenest road ever built in the UK”.
“By putting these zero-emissions machines to work, we’re showing that the construction industry can break its reliance on diesel and these innovative low-carbon approaches can become normal practice on projects across the UK,” he said.
The Lower Thames Crossing was designated as a carbon pathfinder project to reduce its carbon footprint, and prove that low-carbon methods could be rolled out at scale to support the construction industry’s transition to net zero.
The approach has now been adopted by over £30bn of future projects planned by organisations such as Sizewell C, Anglian Water and East West Rail.
