Fortescue Future Industries acquires Xergy assets to develop hydrogen tech company

Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) has made yet another bold move in the ‘green-energy’ space with the acquisition of Xergy Inc and Xergy One Ltd’s commercial assets to form a new, wholly owned subsidiary called FFI Ionix Inc.

Poised to operate in the United States, FFI Ionix will function as a technology development company focused on the global commercialisation of hydrogen technologies such as ion exchange membranes for water electrolysis, electrochemical compression, water transmission and fuel cells.

Xergy founder and FFI Ionix general manager Bamdad Bahar said: “With an intellectual property estate of over 100 patents and applications, and a sales catalogue of various cutting-edge products, including a new range of leading-edge Anion Exchange Membranes, we share FFI’s passion for driving innovation.”

Advancing technologies needed for green hydrogen projects

FFI chief executive officer Julie Shuttleworth said the investments will advance the technologies needed for green hydrogen projects, including the three hydrogen projects the company has announced in recent weeks.

These projects include the build of a hydrogen electrolyser Gigafactory in Queensland with NASDAQ-listed Plug Power Inc.

The two organisations intend to build a two-gigawatt factory to produce large-scale proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers, with the ability to expand into fuel cell systems and other hydrogen-related refuelling and storage infrastructure in the future.

Plug Power will supply the electrolyser and fuel cell technology and FFI will contribute advanced manufacturing capabilities.

FFI also announced a partnership with Incitec Pivot, Australia’s largest fertiliser supplier, to conduct a feasibility study to convert their ammonia-production facility to run on green, renewable hydrogen and acquired a 60 per cent stake in Dutch-based HyET, which also makes hydrogen technologies.

Wider goal to supply 15 mt of green hydrogen globally

Fortescue Future Industries has a vision to produce affordable green hydrogen with the aim to supply 15 mt of green hydrogen globally by 2030.

Earlier in October, Fortescue Metals Group unveiled its target to achieve net-zero scope-3 emissions by 2040 across its global value chain, including crude steel manufacturing which accounts for 98% of scope-3 emissions.

Fortescue chief executive officer Elizabeth Gaines said the company has begun its transition from a pure play iron ore producer to a green renewables and resources company.

The following medium-term targets include:

Enable a reduction in emissions intensity levels from the shipping of Fortescue’s (ASX:FMG) ores by 50 per cent by 2030 from FY21 levels; and
Enable a reduction in emissions intensity levels from steel making by Fortescue’s customers of 7.5 per cent by 2030 from FY21 levels, to 100 per cent by 2040.