SoCalGas and EVOLOH Research Project Helps Make Hydrogen and Electrolyzer Production More Affordable

LOS ANGELES and SANTA CLARA, Calif., July 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) and EVOLOH Inc., an anion exchange membrane (AEM) electrolyzer technology developer, have completed a joint research project that resulted in enhancements to the current electrolyzer manufacturing process and technology. Overall, the enhancements achieved in the project could reduce the capital costs of the electrolyzer technology by approximately 25% and could help make the cost of clean renewable hydrogen more affordable.

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EVOLOH's AEM is made with readily available materials and utilizes a roll-to-roll manufacturing process. This enables a shorter and more reliable supply chain as well as a lower-cost, rapid production process for electrolyzer stack development. The project was able to achieve a 15% increase in hydrogen production efficiency to EVOLOH's Nautilus™ series electrolyzer stack, the core component of an electrolyzer that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen. The increased efficiency also helps extend the equipment lifetime of the stacks compared to traditional techniques.

"Meeting the growing demand for clean renewable hydrogen production will require an extraordinary expansion of the current electrolyzer market," said Jawaad Malik, chief strategy and sustainability officer at SoCalGas. "Innovative projects like this can help significantly reduce electrolyzer system costs and production time and enable clean renewable hydrogen production to become more cost competitive with traditional energy sources."

SoCalGas' Research, Development, and Demonstration (RD&D) Program helped fund the project and provided technical assistance with EVOLOH's development of high-speed coating methods for AEM electrolyzers. The electrolyzer stacks are designed to be compact, modular and are capable of being scaled up to 24 megawatts each, which makes them well-suited for large-scale industrial applications.

"Currently, electrolyzer manufacturing and hydrogen production is expensive. Electrolyzers can be difficult to make, transport and install, and certain current technologies require problematic supply chains," said Dr. Jimmy Rojas, EVOLOH's chief executive officer. "When our technology is produced using renewable energy, hydrogen becomes a versatile, flexible and carbon-free energy platform that opens up new pathways for tackling some of the thorniest climate problems—like heavy transport, steelmaking, fertilizer production and long duration storage."

The technology will soon be scaled up at EVOLOH's new manufacturing Center of Excellence in Lowell, Massachusetts with a goal of producing 3.75GW per year by 2025 in electrolyzer stacks and up to 15GW in 2027. EVOLOH will also begin MW-scale testing at its new headquarters in Santa Clara, California later this year.

SoCalGas' RD&D Program plays a key role in developing and demonstrating innovative products and technologies that can promote decarbonization across the natural gas value chain and a diversified portfolio of cleaner energy sources. Learn more about how SoCalGas is working to help shape California's 21st century energy system at socalgas.com/rdd.

About SoCalGas

SoCalGas is the largest gas distribution utility in the United States serving approximately 21 million consumers across approximately 24,000 square miles of Central and Southern California. SoCalGas' mission is to build the cleanest, safest, most innovative energy infrastructure company in America. SoCalGas aims to deliver affordable, reliable, and increasingly renewable gas service through its pipelines to help advance California's clean energy transition by supporting energy system reliability and resiliency and enabling the integration of renewable resources. SoCalGas is a recognized leader in its industry and community, as demonstrated by being named one of Reuters' Top 100 Innovators Leading the Global Energy Transition and Corporate Member of the Year by the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. SoCalGas is a subsidiary of Sempra (NYSE: SRE), a leading North American energy infrastructure company. For more information, visit SoCalGas.com/newsroom or connect with SoCalGas on social media @SoCalGas.

About EVOLOH

Founded in 2020, EVOLOH Inc. is revolutionizing the manufacturing of water electrolyzers to make low-cost clean hydrogen production possible at gigawatt scale anywhere in the world. Nautilus™ stacks, the company's patented electrolyzers, leverage advanced liquid alkaline technology to minimize costs and technical risks, while also maximizing manufacturing productivity, durability and efficiency. EVOLOH is backed by Engine Ventures, NextEra Energy Resources, 3M Ventures, and supported by Breakthrough Energy Fellows and others. For more information, visit EVOLOH.com.