Utility Global, SAMJIN team up on low-carbon hydrogen in South Korea

By AI, Created 5:46 PM UTC, May 29, 2026, /AGP/ – Utility Global and SAMJIN E&I signed a strategic collaboration to advance low-carbon hydrogen projects and localized H2Gen deployment infrastructure in South Korea. The deal is aimed at Utility’s first commercial-scale Korean project in Daejeon and could help accelerate hydrogen use in mobility, power and industry.

Why it matters: - The collaboration could move Utility Global from demonstration work toward its first commercial-scale deployment in South Korea. - The Daejeon project is designed to support on-site low-carbon hydrogen production close to end users, which can lower delivery complexity and improve project economics. - South Korea is already a major hydrogen market, so a localized production model could influence how future mobility, industrial and municipal hydrogen projects are built.

What happened: - Utility Global and SAMJIN E&I signed a Strategic Collaboration Agreement to jointly advance low-carbon hydrogen production projects and localized H2Gen® deployment infrastructure in South Korea. - The agreement was announced May 29, 2026 in Daejeon. - The collaboration is intended to support a definitive paid engineering services agreement for Utility’s proposed first commercial-scale H2Gen deployment in Daejeon. - Utility says the Daejeon project would build on the company’s Frontier Korea certification and demonstration initiative in Seongnam.

The details: - The proposed Daejeon project is expected to support localized, on-site production of low-carbon hydrogen for mobility, distributed power generation and industrial applications. - The companies plan to collaborate on hydrogen infrastructure development tied to South Korea’s expanding hydrogen sector. - Future applications could include hydrogen mobility and municipal transportation systems, including the hydrogen fuel cell tram project under development in Daejeon. - Under the collaboration, Utility and SAMJIN intend to work on the Daejeon H2Gen project, municipal and government stakeholder engagement, project business structures, special purpose companies, and applications for government funding support mechanisms. - The companies also plan to explore localization of H2Gen skid assembly and manufacturing in South Korea. - That localization could include fabrication of key components such as pressure vessels and valves to Korean industrial and KGS standards. - The parties intend to work toward a fully financed Final Investment Decision target for the Daejeon commercial project by June 2027. - Parker Meeks, chief executive officer and president of Utility Global, said the agreement marks a step from demonstration projects toward full commercial deployment in Asia. - Ho Young JEONG, chief executive officer of SAMJIN E&I, said SAMJIN wants to support commercial hydrogen infrastructure in Korea and future manufacturing, project development and deployment opportunities. - The announcement follows Utility’s $100 million first close of its Series D financing round, led by Ara Partners and APG Asset Management, to accelerate global deployment of the H2Gen platform. - Utility’s H2Gen technology converts water into clean hydrogen and a high-purity CO₂ stream without electricity using industrial off-gases and biogases. - The process is designed to support carbon capture, utilization or sequestration. - The modular system is designed to integrate into existing industrial infrastructure with a small footprint for use in steel, refining, petrochemicals, chemicals, mobility, low-carbon fuels and distributed energy systems. - Utility says the technology produces application-specific hydrogen with low-to-negative carbon intensity on-site from water using a proprietary electrochemical process. - The technology also produces a high-concentration carbon dioxide stream that reduces the cost and complexity of carbon capture. - Ara Partners is a portfolio owner of Utility Global.

Between the lines: - The partnership gives Utility a local manufacturing and project-development counterpart in a country with strong policy and industrial momentum around hydrogen. - South Korea’s interest in mobility, fuel cells and industrial decarbonization creates a potential commercial path for technologies that can plug into existing assets rather than require entirely new energy systems. - The focus on SPCs, funding support and local fabrication suggests the companies are preparing for the regulatory and financial steps needed before construction.

What’s next: - Utility and SAMJIN will pursue engineering services work for the Daejeon project. - The companies will seek municipal and government engagement, funding support and project structuring needed to move toward investment decision. - If the plan advances, the partnership could lead to local assembly and manufacturing of H2Gen components in South Korea. - The target is a fully financed Final Investment Decision by June 2027.

The bottom line: - Utility Global is trying to turn H2Gen from a demonstration platform into a commercial hydrogen business in South Korea, and SAMJIN gives it a local partner to help make that happen.