Australian alkaline electrolyser manufacturer Hysata has raised A$42.5mn ($29.5mn) in a funding round.

Finance came from clean-tech investor Kiko Ventures, intellectual property commercialisation group IP Group Australia, pension fund Hostplus and the venture capital arms of steel firm Bluescope and wind turbine manufacturer Vestas. 

Finance body the Clean Energy Finance Corporation also invested A$10mn into the funding round, building on its initial A$750,000 investment in the early commercial development of the firm.

Hysata’s capillary-fed electrolysis cell promises reduced capex and opex compared with conventional water electrolysers by introducing gas chambers that reduce the number of bubbles in the electrolysis process.

“Hysata’s technology stands out as a true breakthrough” Trezona, Kiko Ventures

Whereas most commercial electrolyser technologies operate at an efficiency of around 75pc or less, the Hysata electrolyser operates at 95pc system efficiency.

The technology is being commercialised by Hysata after being invented by scientists at the University of Wollongong.

“Our mission is to redefine the economics of green hydrogen production through our innovative proprietary electrolyser technology,” says Hysata CEO Paul Barrett.

The technology could potentially enable a green hydrogen production cost well below A$2/kg, according to a peer-reviewed study in science journal Nature.

Funding from the round will be used to expand the Hysata team and develop a pilot manufacturing facility.

“Having assessed scores of electrolyser technologies in my 20 years in clean tech, Hysata’s technology stands out as a true breakthrough,” says Robert Trezona, founding partner of Kiko Ventures.

“The company has redefined the core cell architecture for alkaline electrolysis, producing a practical and scalable solution with game changing efficiency.”

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Author: Tom Young