5 Hydrogen Production Startups Generating Fuel from Water
The hydrogen industry is also growing due to the increased adoption of fuel cells, electric vehicles, clean energy, and carbon emission reduction efforts. However, there is a large gap between the current hydrogen production and demand.
While production methods like steam methane reforming (SMR) meet the growing demand for hydrogen, they are carbon-intensive and energy-consuming. These methods also have complexities like high-temperature requirements and maintenance.
The cost of hydrogen production, scalability, electrolyzer efficiency, and integration with existing energy systems are critical challenges in producing and using hydrogen.
Emerging Hydrogen production startups are focused on solving these challenges by enhancing efficiency and reducing hydrogen production costs with innovative production, storage, and transportation techniques.
These startups focus on producing hydrogen as fuel or an energy method using water or other renewable energy sources. Techniques used by these startups include electrolysis (splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using electricity), thermochemical water splitting, and Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE).
This blog shares a short list of five growth-stage hydrogen production startups, spotlighting cutting-edge technologies, growth stages, funding, and the team behind their growth. These startups have the potential to grow rapidly, are in a good market position, or can introduce game-changing hydrogen production technologies to the market in the next 2-3 years.
This makes them a great option to partner, collaborate, or acquire.
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1. CleanInnoGen Splitting Water with Thermochemically Powered Cu-Cl Cycle
| Founding Year | 2020 |
| Headquarter | Ottawa, Canada |
| Total Funding Amount | Unknown |
| Last Funding Round | Incubator/Accelerator – II |
| Website | https://www.cleaninnogen.com/ |
Producing green hydrogen through conventional methods, such as water electrolysis, is hindered by high costs and the limited availability of renewable energy sources.
CleanInnoGen introduces an innovative solution to this challenge with its thermochemical water-splitting Cu-Cl cycle technology. Their HCuTEC technology, developed with the Canadian Nuclear Laboratory, outperforms traditional water electrolyzers in energy efficiency.
This technology, which has reached a Technical Readiness Level (TRL) of 4, reduces electricity consumption by up to 65% compared to traditional water electrolyzers using heat from high-temperature industries. In the long term, it also leverages cheaper and more readily available sustainable energy sources like solar heat and geothermal energy.
CleanInnoGen, led by co-founders CEO Victoria Xu and President Terry Kimmel, showcased their technology at Canadian Nuclear Laboratories in Chalk River.
Besides being a member of the Board of Directors of CleanInnoGen, Victoria Xu is CEO of miRoncol Diagnostics, Strategic Advisor of Body M3canix, Inc., and an Angel Investor (Capital Angel Network). Xu is one of the founding investors of SheBoot. She worked with Ericcson (Jingasu, China) for 5+ years and Nokia Bell Labs for 5+ years.
Co-founder and president Terry Kimmel has been in the hydrogen industry for around 23+ years. He was VP of the Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association (CHFCA).
Kimmel served as President of the Canadian Hydrogen Association for five years and provided consultancy through his company, TB Kimmel & Assoc.
2. H Genium Producing Green Hydrogen with Heat Energy
| Founding Year | 2022 |
| Headquarter | California, US |
| Total Funding Amount | $4 Million |
| Last Funding Round | Seed Round |
| Website | https://www.hgenium.com/ |
The existing thermochemical water-splitting process consumes much energy and requires advanced materials to withstand extreme conditions. It also requires high temperatures, which are complex to maintain and control.
For instance, two-step metal oxide water splitting requires exotic reactor materials to maintain the high temperatures. Limited heat source options to achieve such high temperatures also pose a major hurdle for commercialization. Conversely, Mineral acid-based thermochemical water splitting at intermediate temperatures (~850°C) involves corrosive and toxic materials.
These factors contribute to higher operational costs and technological hurdles, making it difficult to scale and implement thermochemical processes for hydrogen production efficiently and economically.
H Genium, co-founded by Professor Mark E. Davis and Idealab, is revolutionizing green hydrogen production using its patented thermochemical water-splitting process technology that overcomes the existing challenges.
The innovative approach enables the production of green hydrogen from water using heat energy at temperatures below 1000ºC, marking it as a first-of-its-kind technology. It operates at a moderate temperature of ~850°C and without toxic or corrosive compounds.
This patented process can reduce the costs by 30% associated with green hydrogen production.
H Genium’s technology is currently at an advanced stage of development, with plans to reach pilot plant-scale operations by 2024.
H Genium’s executive team is led by CEO Chris Murphy. Murphy holds a chemical engineering degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has served in leadership roles at DuPont, SABIC, and Dow Chemical.
The startup benefits from the support of Caltech, Idealab Studio, and the Oakcrest Institute of Science’s MOST-IP startup incubator. Its last funding was $4 million from a seed round.
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3. HiiROC Producing Hydrogen with Thermal Plasma Electrolysis
| Founding Year | 2019 |
| Headquarter | Hull, UK |
| Total Funding Amount | £26 Million |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Venture Series Unknown/£26 Million |
| Website | https://hiiroc.com/ |
One challenge with existing renewable hydrogen production methods is carbon emissions, primarily from using grid electricity that is still partially generated from fossil fuels. Even green hydrogen production through electrolysis can indirectly contribute to carbon emissions if electricity is not entirely from renewable sources. Also, some hydrogen production methods create harmful emissions, including carbon dioxide as a by-product.
HiiROC’s unique Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE) technology distinguishes itself by using an electrical field in patented plasma torches to split hydrocarbons, operate at higher pressures, and address carbon condensation issues for continuous flow.
The method has zero CO2 emission and is as cost-effective as steam methane reforming (SMR) but doesn’t require carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). It uses significantly less energy than water electrolysis and produces pure, stable Carbon Black as a by-product, offering an eco-friendly alternative to traditional production methods.
The startup is led by founder Tim Davies (CEO), an Oxford physics graduate who has a history of board roles in various sectors and has created over £2 billion in value through new ventures and expansion,
HiiROC’s latest funding was £26 Million from a Venture – Series Unknown round in Nov 2021.
4. GeoPura leading Hydrogen Generation with Photochemical Water Electrolysis
| Founding Year | 2019 |
| Headquarter | Nottinghamshire, UK |
| Total Funding Amount | £92 Million (2 Rounds) |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Venture Round/£56 Million |
| Website | https://www.geopura.com/ |
Existing hydrogen production methods use fossil fuels or energy derived from fossil fuels as their source. Also, the storage and transportation of hydrogen are major industry challenges.
GeoPura is spearheading the transformation towards green hydrogen energy with its innovative Hydrogen Power Units (HPU), developed in partnership with Siemens Energy.
This startup offers green hydrogen solutions derived from renewable energy sources like solar PV and wind. The entire photochemical water electrolysis process is carbon-free from production to utilization, with pure water as the sole by-product.
Under CEO Andrew Cunningham’s leadership, the startup team includes Rebecca McLean (CCO), Theo Elmer (CTO), and Ian Wilkins as Chief Operating Officer.
Andrew is also the director of Geo Green Power and George Green Power Ltd. He also worked as CTO for AVT Technologies and Global Head Of the Transactions Platform Group for Reuters.
GeoPura raised its latest funding of £56 Million from a venture round on February 22, 2024. The round was led by Sustainable Impact Capital and the UK Infrastructure Bank. Barclays and GM Ventures are other lead investors backing this startup.
5. H2PRO Producing Hydrogen with ETAC
| Founding Year | 2019 |
| Headquarter | Caesarea, Hefa, Israel |
| Total Funding Amount | $107.2 Million |
| Last Funding Round | Grant |
| Website | http://www.H2Pro.co |
Producing green hydrogen at scale is costly and requires advanced equipment and materials.
Traditional electrolysis requires significant electricity, often derived from non-renewable sources, and SMR emits considerable CO2. Also, costly equipment like electrolysis membranes is needed to produce hydrogen using these methods.
H2Pro is transforming the green hydrogen sector with its E-TAC (Electrochemical – Thermally Activated Chemical) technology. This method splits water into hydrogen and oxygen in separate steps, eliminating the need for costly membranes in traditional electrolysis systems.
The startup aims to produce green hydrogen at reduced costs and increased efficiency, targeting under $1 per kilogram by the latter half of the decade. H2Pro’s E-TAC technology has a high Faradic efficiency of 98.7%.
H2Pro was founded by Technion researchers Dr. Hen Dotan, Prof. Gideon Grader, Prof. Avner Rothschild, and entrepreneur Talmon Marco (known for Viber and Juno).
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Author: Naveen Kumar, Marketing
