Utility, a U.S.-based industrial decarbonization company, has signed a project agreement with the Seongnam Municipal Government in South Korea to build and operate an H2Gen® hydrogen demonstration and certification plant.
The project—dubbed “Frontier Korea”—will be located at the Seongnam Water Reclamation Center and marks the first international deployment of Utility’s H2Gen technology platform outside the United States.
South Korea’s national hydrogen strategy, introduced in 2019 and reinforced under the Hydrogen Economy Roadmap, has placed the country among the global frontrunners in hydrogen adoption. It aims to produce 30% of the world’s hydrogen-powered vehicles and 20% of fuel cells by 2030, while cutting reliance on imported fossil fuels. Against this backdrop, the Seongnam project aligns with the government’s drive to integrate hydrogen production into municipal waste infrastructure—turning organic waste into a domestic energy source and reducing methane emissions from landfills and wastewater facilities.
The Frontier Korea facility will produce fuel-cell-grade hydrogen with a purity exceeding 99.995%, supplying E1’s hydrogen refueling station in Seongnam. The hydrogen will be used primarily for fuel-cell buses, trucks, and passenger vehicles—an important application in a country where hydrogen mobility infrastructure is among the world’s most advanced.
Utility’s H2Gen platform differentiates itself from conventional electrolysis by producing hydrogen directly from biogas through an electrochemical process that requires no external electricity input. Instead, it utilizes raw biogas energy derived from anaerobic digestion. The company claims this enables “clean-carbon” hydrogen production at lower costs and with greater efficiency, though independent verification will depend on meeting Korea Gas Safety standards through the demonstration phase.
For Utility, the project serves a dual purpose: validating H2Gen under Korea’s regulatory and industrial framework while positioning itself within a market with extensive opportunities in biogas, refining, and steelmaking. Korea’s integrated policy support and industrial base make it an attractive proving ground for hydrogen technologies. The company has also established Utility Korea LLC as a fully owned subsidiary under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act, signaling a long-term commitment to local operations.
The Seongnam project follows Utility’s October 2024 launch of its “Frontier Facility” in Houston, Texas—a modular hydrogen production plant used for continuous operations and technology validation across multiple feedstocks. The Korean counterpart will replicate that model, providing comparative performance data and operational benchmarks tailored to local conditions and feed gas compositions.
Stay updated on the latest in energy! Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X for real-time news and insights. Don’t miss out on exclusive interviews and webinars—subscribe to our YouTube channel today! Join our community and be part of the conversation shaping the future of energy.
