ZeroAvia and Masdar announce hydrogen production partnership

ZeroAvia has signed a partnership with UAE-based renewal energy producer, Masdar to explore hydrogen production and supply.

The agreement will focus at first on North American and European projects, while also looking at the opportunity to establish operations in the UAE.

Masdar, which is taking what it calls a “smart first mover” approach, is targeting one million tonnes of green hydrogen production per year by 2030. Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, Masdar’s CEO, said: “Masdar looks forward to working with innovative partners like ZeroAvia to advance decarbonisation in hard-to-abate sectors, such as aviation. As the UAE’s clean energy champion, we are passionate about unlocking the potential of green hydrogen to build a greener future for all.”

ZeroAvia wants to be refuelling onboard aircraft tanks for up to 90-seat aircraft at commercial airports by the end of the decade. With all those aircraft requiring up to one ton of hydrogen per each short regional flight, even a small commercial airport could drive more than a hundred tons of demand daily.

Val Miftakhov, founder and CEO, ZeroAvia, said: “We need large investment in renewable energy capacity to accelerate a future of truly clean flight for the entire industry, so we are delighted to partner with Masdar in this endeavour. Together, we are bringing the clean propulsion technology and the fuel to airlines to ensure that passengers can fly without any emissions and climate effects as soon as possible.”

Earlier this month, ZeroAvia announced development of a compressor for hydrogen fuel cell-based aviation propulsion systems, such as its ZA600 hydrogen-electric powertrain. The “breakthrough” enables the company to integrate the technology as a core part of its first two hydrogen-electric engines: ZA600 and ZA2000.

Rudolf Coertze, chief technical officer Hydrogen, ZeroAvia, said: “The compressor technology we have designed is critical in delivering optimal performance in the final, certified ZA600 engine technology. Our compressor is an important component of our fuel cell power generation systems, and a world-leading technology advancement for clean aviation in its own right. This really is a major achievement for our turbomachinery engineers and another marquee moment for the company at large.”