Californian electrolyser start-up CEO calls for new hydrogen industry supply chains

The CEO of a Californian electrolyser start-up has called for a new approach towards the hydrogen industry’s supply chains to better support long-term energy transition.

In an exclusive interview with H2 View, Marty Neese, CEO of Verdagy, said he would like to see industries move away from the supply chain pathways that have traditionally been used in the energy industry.

“I don’t want to see everybody approach the same supply chain pathways that they’ve used for the last 25 years, where it’s all outsourced to one country, and low cost is the only thing that matters, where you hollow out and essentially miss the opportunity to really create sustainable, localised supply capabilities necessary to adequately support the long-term energy transition,” Neese said.

He continued, “I think we can do it better this time, with a thoughtful combination of global and local suppliers, and good policy support that keeps everything level and balanced.”

The start-up, renowned for its novel electrochemical cell, which provides dramatic reductions in the cost of green hydrogen production, is looking to capitalise on the recent waves of policy support that has been seen in the US, Europe and Canada in the form of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the European Hydrogen Bank and Hydrogen Investment Tax Credit, respectively.

Neese would also like to see political stability in the long-term to allow the large pieces of hydrogen supporting legislation to play out. For example, he said, “Let’s see if the US has the capability to stick it out longer than one congressional cycle,” in reference to the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“They’ve done all the work to get this policy underway, let’s see it through and let it have the opportunity to really create this new market,” he said.

You can read H2 View’s exclusive interview with the Verdagy CEO in full here.