Utility Global and Symbio North America Announce Strategic Alliance to Advance Zero-Emission Hydrogen Mobility

The Alliance Aims to Develop a Circular Ecosystem of Zero-Emission Fuel Cell Refuse Trucks and Economic Low-Carbon H2 Supply with Grant from South Coast AQMD

Houston, TX, and Temecula, CA — November 10, 2025 — Utility Global (“Utility”), a U.S.-based leader in economic industrial decarbonization through innovative hydrogen solutions, and Symbio North America Corporation (“Symbio”), part of Symbio Group, Europe’s largest fuel cell technology developer and manufacturer headquartered in France, today announced that Symbio has received approval from the South Coast Air Quality Management District (South Coast AQMD) for a Clean Fuels Fund grant to design, develop, and demonstrate a hydrogen fuel cell refuse collection vehicle in the South Coast Air Basin. Utility will manage and oversee the hydrogen fueling logistics and operations throughout the one-year demonstration.

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Utility and Symbio have also entered into a strategic alliance to accelerate the adoption of zero-emission, hydrogen-powered refuse trucks in North America.

This collaboration tackles two major challenges facing the refuse collection sector:

1. High performing zero-emission vehicle: Developing a hydrogen-electric refuse truck powered by Symbio’s advanced fuel cell technology that will exceed the duty cycle and payload of available battery-electric vehicles while meeting operational expectations of refuse haulers.

2. Fuel economics: Delivering economic, reliable, low-to-negative carbon intensity hydrogen fuel from water, without electricity, using biogas (e.g., landfill gas) in Utility’s H2Gen system – a core enabler of Utility’s mission to drive economic decarbonization across heavy industries.

Together, Utility and Symbio will deliver an integrated, cost-effective solution that combines economic hydrogen supply with best-in-class vehicle performance and durability.

As part of the South Coast AQMD-funded demonstration, initial vehicle trials will begin in Southern California in collaboration with WM, CR&R Environmental Services, and the Cities of Los Angeles and Riverside in the first half of 2026. The Clean Energy Institute at the University of California, Irvine will collect and analyze operational and performance data throughout the demonstration period to help validate the technology for future commercial scale-up.

“We support projects like this that combine advanced vehicle technology with innovative clean hydrogen solutions,” said Wayne Nastri, Executive Officer of South Coast AQMD. “This strategic collaboration represents a meaningful step toward reducing emissions in communities across South Coast Air Basin.”

“This alliance is about turning waste into real, scalable decarbonization,” stated Parker Meeks, CEO of Utility Global. “By pairing Utility’s H2Gen technology – which produces economic, low-carbon hydrogen from water without electricity by utilizing the electrochemical energy in biogases such as landfill gas – alongside Symbio’s proven fuel cell systems, we can deliver a zero-emission hydrogen-electric refuse truck solution that matches diesel performance. This alliance embodies our mission of enabling economic industrial decarbonization through practical, cost-effective solutions.”

Jean-Baptiste Lucas, CEO of Symbio, added, “Joining forces with Utility Global enables us to expand the reach of our fuel cell technology while supporting the growing need for sustainable transport solutions in the waste management sector.”

This non-exclusive Strategic Alliance is already effective while allowing both parties to pursue additional partnerships to further accelerate market adoption of hydrogen-electric refuse vehicles and associated scale-up of decentralized hydrogen supply and infrastructure.

About South Coast AQMD

South Coast AQMD is the regulatory agency responsible for improving air quality for large areas of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties, including the Coachella Valley. South Coast AQMD’s mission is to clean the air and protect the health of all residents in the South Coast Air Basin through practical and innovative strategies. For more information, visit www.aqmd.gov.

About Utility Global

Utility delivers practical solutions that power economic industrial decarbonization across industries such as steel, mobility, refining, chemicals, and upstream oil & gas. Its breakthrough H2Gen technology harnesses energy from industrial off-gases and various biogases to produce high-purity, low-to-negative carbon intensity hydrogen from water on-site, without electricity, via its proprietary electrochemical process. Utility is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a private equity firm specializing in industrial decarbonization investments. For more information, visit www.utilityglobal.com.

About Ara Partners

Ara Partners is a global private equity and infrastructure investment firm focused on industrial decarbonization. Founded in 2017, Ara Partners seeks to build and scale companies with significant decarbonization impact across the industrial, manufacturing, chemicals, materials, and energy sectors. The company operates from offices in Houston, Boston, Washington D.C., and Dublin. For more information, visit www.arapartners.com.

About Symbio

Symbio is a leading fuel cell technology developer and manufacturer in Europe. The company designs and mass-produces high-performance StackPack™ hydrogen fuel cell systems for mobility and stationary applications. Symbio operates a Gigafactory in Saint-Fons, France, and a facility in Temecula, California. It is a joint venture between Forvia, Michelin, and Stellantis. For more information, visit www.symbio.one and Symbio on LinkedIn.