A Tees Valley facility providing hydrogen to businesses is to double its capacity less than nine months after opening, in order to meet demand.

Industrial gases business BOC is to expand its hydrogen trailer filling facility on Teesside which was opened in March.

The unit compresses hydrogen gas into specially built road-trailers for distribution around the country.

It can be used for industrial power purposes, as well as hydrogen vehicles.

The increased capacity will mean that in a year the amount of gas produced at the site could power a hydrogen vehicle for 1,000 circuits of the Earth.

The company said that as well as growing demand for the facility's services from further afield its presence in the North-East is also helping to drive inward investment.

BOC commercial manager Dave Lockyer said: "The hydrogen is currently being used by some of the larger commercial companies in the North-East.

"Having the hydrogen capability on Teesside puts the North-East in a strong position to attract inward investment and we are talking to a number of potential inward investors.

"What we have found is that we filled the capacity and achieved our sales forecast in year one.

"We have had further enquiries and are confident we will fill the larger capacity."

BOC UK and Ireland managing director Mike Huggon, who was raised in Darlington, said: "Some of the most exciting developments at present are in the creation of a sustainable, hydrogen-based economy.

"The expansion of the Teesside hydrogen trailer facility will enable us to reach more customers and service these developments."

The existing Teesside development was part-funded by the Tees Valley Industrial Programme, set up to generate employment opportunities, through the Tees Valley Unlimited (TVU) LEP.

TVU's director of business investment Neil Kenley said: "BOC is a real asset for the area and we were confident that the initial investment in their innovation would help sow the seed for further investments at a later date."