I saw a class 222 at Preston earlier today in debranded EMR livery. It appears it was being used by Lumo for a test run ahead of their new Stirling to Euston service.
The test runs have been taking place north of Preston since the start of the year.
As I passed the Alstom facility at Widnes last week, it looked like one was outside waiting to be refurbished for the new service.