Hycamite raises 25 million euros from Sojitz and other investors to support low-carbon hydrogen production with methane pyrolysis

Investment is the latest vote of confidence in new low-carbon hydrogen and solid carbon production technology based on the thermo-catalytic decomposition of methane (TCD).

Hycamite TCD Technologies, a leader in emission-free methane pyrolysis technology, announced today that it has received an investment from Sojitz Group and Stephen Industries. Sojitz Group is a Japanese conglomerate with approximately 400 subsidiaries and affiliates in Japan and worldwide. Stephen Industries is a family-owned Finnish company. The Finnish Climate Fund and existing and first external investors HAI Kapital, Holdix, and Turret have also decided to invest in Hycamite. New and existing investors are investing 25 million euros towards Hycamite’s innovative technology for decarbonizing industry.

“The investment makes it possible to scale our technology to launch the production on the commercial scale. We will serve our clients in North America, Japan and Europe,” said Ms. Laura Rahikka, CEO and Founder of Hycamite.

Hycamite decarbonizes industry through its low-carbon hydrogen and provision of sustainable carbon products for demanding industrial applications. Hycamite technology decomposes large volumes of methane into its component elements: hydrogen and carbon. The TCD technology developed by Hycamite does not release greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Furthermore, its catalysts are sustainable. The company’s technology requires only 13% of the energy needed to produce hydrogen by electrolysis.

Using methane as feedstock allows hydrogen production to be scaled rapidly. Hydrogen can be produced from methane from natural gas, biomethane or synthetic methane. With Hycamite’s technology, the petrochemical industry’s side streams can also be used as raw material. If biomethane or e-methane made with ambient CO2 were used as feedstock, the resulting hydrogen would be carbon negative.

“Sojitz strives to realize a decarbonized society through its business activities, and this capital tie-up with Hycamite is strategically important to our company. Hycamite’s revolutionary zero-emission hydrogen technology can contribute to the decarbonization of diverse industries and thus represents a promising choice for the future. We aim to provide new value to the industrial sector through businesses that utilize this technology. Sojitz will leverage its expertise and global networks as it partners with Hycamite to expand society’s use of zero-emission hydrogen and conduct marketing for carbon products,” said Taro Okamura, COO of Sojitz Chemicals Division.

“We are pleased to support Finnish top technology that helps the world to fight climate change,” said COB of Stephen Industries Kustaa Poutiainen.

As Paula Laine, CEO of the Finnish Climate Fund, remarked, “Hycamite’s solution diversifies the hydrogen project offering and replaces gray hydrogen in industrial applications. I see an exciting role in the hydrogen economy for it. The carbon from the feed gas used in the process is recovered in solid form and can be used for various applications.”

Hycamite’s technology is a cutting-edge carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) technology. Hydrogen can be used as either industrial raw material or fuel, and Hycamite’s carbon nanoproducts lend themselves to versatile applications, including Li-ion batteries, concrete, composite materials, and filter purifiers.

Hycamite is a privately-owned company headquartered in Kokkola, Finland. Its methane pyrolysis technology is based on long-standing research in applied chemistry from the University of Oulu, Finland.