Ohmium raised $250M to develop hydrogen technology
Ohmium, the Silicon Valley company, announced on Wednesday that it plans to develop new technology that will help to hinder climate change. Many experts speak about the damage global warming could bring to humanity, pointing out various ways it could change our lives for the worst. The danger is real, and the process is progressing much faster than analysts thought initially. Consequently, various governments and investors are ready to take measures to prevent such an end. Ohmium is one of them.
The company hopes that its project might become a milestone for the industry. It has already raised $250 million to continue its research and production. The team is creating machines that make clean hydrogen that won’t damage the atmosphere. This can prove revolutionary if the company’s vision comes true. Ohmium suggests burning hydrogen instead of coal, gas, or oil. Some experts agree with the company, stating that hydrogen could substitute these substances. That means factories could produce steel or cement without using fuel, which contributes to climate change.
Thus far, research on the subject has been mostly theoretical, but real-world examples are already available. Daryl Wilson, the executive director of the Hydrogen Council, stated that a company filtering clean hydrogen from water wouldn’t have been able to get the funding of several hundred million dollars four or five years ago. However, the demand for such technology is growing, and more and more companies agree that hydrogen might be humanity’s best bet.
What do the experts say?
Raising $250 million for the project development is very impressive – noted Mark Viehman, hydrogen and clean fuels expert at the consulting firm Capgemini. He also pointed out that according to recent research, 64% of utility and energy firms plan to invest money into low-carbon hydrogen efforts by the end of this decade.
Ohmium’s project might help greatly. In fact, the company might become one of the major contributors to the industry. It is currently working on electrolyzers. These are devices that take water and split it into oxygen and hydrogen, thus, getting clean hydrogen to use for various purposes.
However, CEO Arne Ballantine said that Ohmium plans to use the $250 million to add to its 400-person workforce, continue research at the Fremont, California headquarters, and scale up its plant in India. He also added that the company wants to produce enough electrolyzers per year to supply 2 gigawatts’ worth of hydrogen. That would be enough for several refineries or a few fertilizer plants.
