The Ontario government has announced a $500,000 grant for an Owen Sound and Collingwood-based company that is working on technology to use renewable energy such as wind and solar power to produce green hydrogen.
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On Monday, Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Rick Byers announced the funding through the Regional Development Program’s Southwestern Ontario Development Fund, that will support a more than $4.6-million investment by the company to build production capacity in for its RuggedCell water electrolyser technology in Owen Sound. The investment is in support of the company’s first phase manufacturing rollout in the city
The technology uses electricity to break out hydrogen and oxygen from water. When paired with low- and non-carbon dioxide-emitting sources of electricity, the cells produce “green” hydrogen to replace fossil fuels in energy-intensive industies such as metal, cement, ammonia and fertilizer production. The hydrogen, of which the only byproduct is water when it is burned, would fuel aircraft, ships, trucks and rail.
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The investment by Hydrogen Optimized in Owen Sound would boost local manufacturing and create five new good-paying jobs, it said in the news release.
“We thank the Ontario government for its support as we advance our RuggedCell manufacturing capacity to 100 MW annually and create high-quality jobs in Owen Sound,” Hydrogen Optimized President and CEO Andrew T.B. Stewart said in the release. “This investment also paves the way for future manufacturing automation and the expansion of our output to 500 MW annually to meet the growing demand for large-scale green hydrogen.”
Hydrogen Optimized, which moved into the former Tenneco plant in Owen Sound in early 2021 to continue to develop its technology, announced earlier this year that it had succesfully demonstrated that its RuggedCell system could be powered by the variable winds found in the West African country of Mauritania. It is there were renewable energy developer CWP Global is exploring generating green hydrogen at its planned 30 gigawatt AMAN project.
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In March, the company announced a new U.S. subsidiary and an office in Houston, Texas, opening the way for the company to develop green hydrogen projects in U.S. markets.
The provincial funding announced on Monday comes from the $100-million Regional Development Program, which provides cost-shared funding to businesses, municipalities and economic development organizations to help communities attract investment, diversify their economies and create jobs.
“Our government is building a strong Ontario and strengthening the economy by supporting key investments in communities in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound,” Byers said in announcing the investment. “With this investment, Hydogen Optimized will grow local manufacturing and create more good-paying jobs for workers and families in this riding.”
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