HyPoint, a business that develops zero-carbon, turbo air-cooled hydrogen fuel cell systems for aviation and urban air mobility, has opened the doors to its new Discovery Park facility in Sandwich, aimed at boosting hydrogen innovation in the United Kingdom.
The new flagship location, approximately two hours southeast of London, will contain the company’s research laboratories and manufacturing facilities, collaborating closely with the company’s Silicon Valley headquarters in Menlo Park, California.
HyPoint will invest more than £11 million in Sandwich over the next two years and expand its workforce to more than 50 employees, a plan that was recognized by 10 Downing Street at the Green Investment Summit in October 2021. By the end of 2025, the company plans to employ more than 100 people and have an onsite plant capacity of 100 megawatts.
“HyPoint is the kind of visionary tech company that we welcome. This Government is developing an ambitious Jet Zero Strategy, and we recognise the role that hydrogen could play in decarbonising the industry,” said Transport Minister Trudy Harrison, who serves as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Transport. “This move is a strong vote of confidence in the UK and a major boost for green jobs in the local area.”
“It is fantastic to see HyPoint opening the doors to its new Discovery Park in Sandwich. This location will help drive forward innovation in the technologies that could make zero-emission aviation a reality,” said Industry Minister Lee Rowley, who serves as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. “Not only is this facility a win for the UK aerospace sector, it is also a win for our plans to level up across the UK, and I look forward to seeing its footprint expand in the coming years.”
“With its massive technical and academic talent pool, a globally recognised ecosystem of hydrogen manufacturers, and strong transport decarbonisation targets, the UK is well-positioned to become a global leader in the hydrogen economy,” said Dr. Alex Ivanenko, HyPoint’s founder and chief executive. “We are thrilled to bring our team and technology to the world-class Discovery Park science and innovation hub, which is already home to industry giants such as Pfizer. This location will enable us to accelerate the development and delivery of our hydrogen fuel cell technology to aviation and aeronautical companies in the UK and around the world. Our work is critical to unlocking faster decarbonisation of aviation and urban air mobility, whilst also creating economic activity and jobs across the country to support the long-term sustainability of the UK’s aviation industry.”
“HyPoint’s anticipated £11 million investment is a welcome boost for East Kent jobs and growth,” said Derek Murphy, Kent County Council Cabinet Member for Economic Development. “The decision to base a state-of-the-art R&D facility here is both a strong endorsement of KCC’s long-term support for Discovery Park and an exciting development which puts Kent at the forefront of the global green transport revolution.”
“Discovery Park has always sought to be home to companies tackling the biggest issues facing our global community. Harnessing hydrogen for aviation offers the potential to transform our economy and, at the same time, protect our environment by dramatically reducing CO2 emissions,” said Mayer Schreiber, CEO of Discovery Park. “HyPoint’s multi-million-pound arrival clearly demonstrates their confidence in Discovery Park as a home for world-leading industrial biotechnology delivered through global partnership and innovation.”
Aviation accounted for 2.4 percent of worldwide CO2 emissions in 2018, placing it sixth globally, after Japan and Germany, and accounting for a bigger share of global CO2 emissions than the 136 lowest-polluting countries combined. Non-CO2 effects, such as the warmth caused by aircraft contrails and other pollutants, raise aviation’s total contribution to global warming to around 5%. Due to the fact that fossil fuel jets sold today are likely to remain in service for decades — and air travel is predicted to continue growing — aviation’s contribution to climate change is expected to expand significantly in comparison to other industries that are currently decarbonising. According to BloombergNEF, if nothing is done, yearly aviation emissions will climb to 2.05 Gt in 2050, a 92 percent increase from 2019.
HyPoint’s NASA-award-winning technique combines cooling and oxygen delivery with compressed air to provide a hydrogen fuel cell system that surpasses existing battery and hydrogen fuel cell alternatives. HyPoint is able to achieve unparalleled performance while decreasing overall system weight by more than 60% by utilizing specialized high-temperature membranes and an industry-first air cooling technology.
HyPoint’s present system is capable of delivering 2,000 W/kg of specific power, more than tripling the power-to-weight ratio of conventional liquid-cooled hydrogen fuel cell systems, and 1,500 Wh/kg of energy density, more than seven times the energy density of current battery systems. HyPoint announced a cooperation with BASF, the world’s largest chemical company, in October to develop a cutting-edge hydrogen fuel cell membrane that will considerably enhance HyPoint’s system-level power while also increasing its durability and operating temperature. The new system, which will be available in 2025, will be capable of delivering more than 3,000 W/kg of specific power — at least a 50% improvement over the current system — which is sufficient for narrow-body aircraft.
“ZeroAvia and HyPoint are aligned in our vision to fully decarbonize the aviation industry and supplant fossil fuel powertrains with zero-emission hydrogen-electric powertrains. ZeroAvia is doing most of its R&D activity for our 10-20 seat engines in the UK, and it’s great to have a leading fuel cell developer such as HyPoint nearby,” said Val Miftakhov, founder and CEO of ZeroAvia, who was also present at the ceremony. In 2020, ZeroAvia — which has offices in Kemble and London — became the first company to successfully complete a hydrogen-electric passenger aircraft flight. It has raised $115 million from investors that include United Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, Breakthrough Energy Ventures (Bill Gates’ fund), Shell, and others. “We continue to work closely with HyPoint to develop hydrogen fuel cells for future ZeroAvia power plants, and are looking forward to even closer collaboration going forward.”
In August, HyPoint announced a partnership with Piasecki Aircraft to co-develop hydrogen fuel cell systems for eVTOL applications including its PA-890 Compound eVTOL Helicopter, which is expected to become the first hydrogen-powered manned helicopter when it is unveiled in 2025. “HyPoint is well-positioned to be the first company to bring to market hydrogen fuel cells that are uniquely designed for aircraft and aeronautical use,” said John Piasecki, President and CEO of Piasecki, who was also in attendance. “We are excited for the HyPoint team and look forward to co-developing full-scale systems for zero-emission eVTOL flight.”
