Metacon AB announces an important milestone in its global expansion strategy by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at a strategic partnership with the Chinese company PERIC Hydrogen Technologies, a world-leading manufacturer of, among other things, large-scale electrolytic H₂ generators (electrolyzers).

The MoU means that Metacon and PERIC have established the principles for a manufacturing and sales agreement that gives PERIC the right to manufacture and sell Metacon’s H₂ generators (HHG systems) based on Metacon’s patented reforming technology for the Chinese market. The agreement that this MoU refers to can give Metacon both a strong volume manufacturer for all of Metacon’s markets and a sales partner in one of the world’s largest H₂ markets.

The planned strategic partnership means that Metacon gives PERIC a so-called original equipment manufacturer (OEM) license for the manufacture of Metacon’s advanced H₂ generators for the production of H₂ from various non-electric energy sources such as biogas, ethanol, ammonia and more. To the extent that a final agreement can be reached, PERIC will receive the manufacturing and sales rights for Metacon’s HHG system in the expansive Chinese market, which is already the largest H₂ market in the world.

China is the country in the world with the highest production of H₂ and has the most refueling stations for H₂-powered vehicles, today about 10 times more than the next country. According to the China Hydrogen Alliance, the production of fossil-free H₂ in China will increase from one percent to 15% of the total production of H₂ in China by 2030. To reach these goals, China has set aside more than $42 B.

The need for fossil-free H₂ is growing rapidly and through a collaboration with Metacon, PERIC can complement its own electrolyzer technology with Metacon’s reforming technology. Similar to Metacon’s strategy, PERIC will be able to address different parts of the H₂ market and offer a solution for H₂ production to customers regardless of specific conditions.

Provided that the collaboration is in place, this enables Metacon to quickly establish itself in the Chinese market without having to invest in its own manufacturing capacity or build up a separate sales organization in China. Metacon will instead be able to focus on manufacturing the core components, including the central patented reactor where the catalytic reforming to H₂ takes place. Thus, Metacon can focus on ensuring serial production of reactors of the highest quality and the development of the technical innovations that characterize Metacon’s products.

Through the agreed principles, Metacon reserves the right to manufacture and deliver the reactors to PERIC, which will then assemble them and manufacture quality-assured high-capacity HHG systems for the Chinese market.

"With this MoU, Metacon takes an important step towards being able to enter into a groundbreaking agreement for reaching the world’s largest H₂ market, several times larger than the European market and a market that is difficult to access for non-Chinese suppliers. It’s hard to imagine a better partner for this than PERIC with their 60 yr of experience in H₂ technology and large existing production capabilities for similar products," said Christer Wikner, CEO & President, Metacon.

Yuguan Zhang, CEO, PERIC Hydrogen Technologies said, "We see great opportunities for Metacon’s reformer systems in the Chinese market. PERIC has extensive experience in technology for H₂ production and purification and one of the world’s best production facilities. The link to PERIC’s portfolio of H₂ refueling stations and China’s infrastructure expansion is also relevant."