Additional investment comes from Barclays’ Sustainable Impact Capital programme, and existing Protium investors. The funding round is the largest funding secured for a pure play green hydrogen energy company in the UK to date.
Protium is a green hydrogen energy company that provides end-to-end net zero energy solutions for specific end customers with net zero ambitions. It does this by designing, developing, financing, owning, and operating green hydrogen and renewable energy infrastructure assets. By packaging multiple infrastructure assets together, Protium can support its clients to decarbonise their heat, power, and transportation requirements through a commercial structure called a HESCOTM.
Protium is one of fewer than ten global green hydrogen energy companies who have secured institutional funding over £20 million. The company is now the best-resourced green hydrogen energy company in the UK, and uniquely poised to play a critical role in building the decentralised infrastructure critical to decarbonise the UK economy and meet the goal of achieving Net Zero by 2050.
This funding will allow Protium to accelerate its growing portfolio of >250 MW of green hydrogen projects, including its flagship project in Magor South Wales with Budweiser and its 40 MW green hydrogen project in Teesside, through planning, engineering and permitting. Protium intends to significantly scale-up its teams regionally throughout the UK and also across Europe.
This round will also support the development of Protium’s in-house digital capabilities including its digital twin and energy system optimisation expertise, as well as enhancing its project and operational efficiency systems.
Lead investor SWEN is the market leader in supporting green gas projects and developers. Its SWIFT 2 fund (SWEN Impact Fund for Transition 2) is an infrastructure fund dedicated to renewable gas and circular economy initiatives.
Additionally, Protium has made two new board appointments as part of the raise - Olivier Aubert, Managing Director at SWEN Capital Partners and Steven Poulter, Head of Principal Structuring and Investments at Barclays.
Ahead of the funding round, Protium also appointed Claire Perry O’Neill to its advisory board. Claire was the UK Government Minister responsible for Energy and Clean Growth until 2020.
“Preventing catastrophic climate change is the greatest challenge society faces today” said Chris Jackson, CEO and Founder of Protium, commenting on the announcement. “We are attempting to perform the fastest energy sector transformation in known economic history, which requires unprecedented speed, support and collaboration. The expertise and resources provided by SWEN and Barclays will help to accelerate the deployment of green hydrogen infrastructure and enable our partners to achieve their net zero goals faster. It is also a vote of confidence for green hydrogen, which we hope will catalyse other business and investors to push forward with us towards a cleaner, more sustainable future. Our funding is a small step towards the UN’s target of $5 trillion a year for climate financing, but one that we hope will catalyse others to follow to make the net zero ambitions of companies, societies and government, a reality.”
The funding demonstrates confidence in the green energy sector, showing UK and EU institutional capital is being drawn into financing companies that are moving consumers towards domestically produced and consumed green fuels.
It also coincides with the UK Government’s calls for applications under the £240 million Net Zero Hydrogen Fund (NZHF) – Protium has the clients, the expertise and the resources to ensure it will be among the first to develop and reach financial close on fully integrated green hydrogen projects in the UK.
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