About The Hydro-Hub

The Chester Weir, Old Dee Bridge and the water powered industries that operated there are important Heritage assets for the City of Chester with a history dating back to the 11th Century. I look forward to seeing the proposals from CHASE and the CHBPT, following a public consultation, on how we can bring the old Hydro Electric power station building back into use for the benefit of the public, to tell the stories of how the Weir shaped the history of Chester and its people and how clean energy will also shape our future.

The Cheshire Historic Buildings Preservation Trust is committed to finding sustainable new lives for our rich and varied heritage. The Hydro is a Listed building, hidden in plain sight and we will seek creative and sympathetic ways of opening it up for Chester’s citizens and visitors.

The Climate crisis that we are facing demands urgent and meaningful changes in how we travel, grow our food, heat our homes and fuel our industry. There is no single solution, but instead multiple actions are required. Some of the technologies are new and unfamiliar, and the Hydro Hub will be a place to come and learn.

We are excited to be involved in the Hydro Hub project, connecting the city’s history with the region’s urgent transition to a low carbon future through the repurposing of an historic site.

“Through our Citizen Student strategy, the University is committed to equipping its students to be confident and active citizens for a sustainable future. The Hydro Hub is a unique opportunity for students and staff from a variety of disciplines, including Computer Science, Engineering, and Tourism Management, to work together on the development of innovative, interactive visitor attractions and educational tools to benefit both our community and visitors to the city.

This is a fantastic community initiative bringing a disused public building back to life with cutting edge technology at the heart of it. This will go a long way in highlighting the technologies we will need to be implementing to reach our carbon neutrality target of 2030 for Cheshire West and Chester and 2045 for the Borough.

HyNet, Protos and the plans for the wider Ellesmere Port Industrial Area will position Cheshire West as a world leader in low carbon energy, technology and innovation. It will create thousands of new jobs for people in our area and for Ellesmere Port, a town with a proud industrial past, it delivers a green industrial future. Equally for Chester, a city proud of its heritage, the Hydro project will bring a historic building back in to use and create a new attraction which boosts jobs in Chester’s visitor economy.