Calgary-based Ayrton Energy, a developer of liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) technology, has raised USD $6.8 million in seed financing to advance its innovative approach to delivering clean hydrogen.
The funding round was led by Clean Energy Ventures and BDC Capital’s investment arm, with contributions from Antares Ventures, EPS Ventures, SOSV, the51, and UCeed Investment Funds.
The newly acquired funds will help Ayrton Energy scale its proprietary technology, expand its team, and establish operations in U.S. energy hubs. Ayrton’s LOHC system allows hydrogen to be stored and transported at room temperature and low pressure, a significant advancement over traditional methods requiring high-pressure containers or cryogenic temperatures.
“The transportation and storage of clean hydrogen is a major barrier to expanding hydrogen adoption in critical sectors for decarbonization,” said Daniel Goldman, Co-founder of Clean Energy Ventures. “Ayrton’s solution demonstrates an innovative, scalable, and cost-effective path for using hydrogen in geographies far beyond where hydrogen can be produced at low cost.”
Hydrogen is expected to play a major role in decarbonizing hard-to-abate industries like aviation and shipping. Deloitte estimates the clean hydrogen market could grow to $1.4 trillion annually by 2050, providing up to 85 gigatons in cumulative CO2 reductions. Ayrton’s technology offers a solution to the high costs of hydrogen transport and storage, which have slowed growth in the sector.
“Ayrton’s technology will enable sizable greenhouse gas reduction and help Canada reach its 2030 and 2050 climate targets,” added Cheri Corbett of BDC Capital’s Climate Tech Fund.
Ayrton has already launched a pilot program in Alberta, Canada, in partnership with ATCO Gas, aiming to produce tens of tons of hydrogen annually.