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The parties will develop high-flow, flexible hoses to support fueling heavy-duty vehicles with cryo-compressed hydrogen

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San Francisco, California & Newton Square, PA July 23, 2024 — Verne and LifeGuard Technologies announced a Memorandum of Understanding to develop high-flow, flexible safety hoses for cryo-compressed hydrogen fueling of heavy-duty vehicles. The two companies will collaborate to accelerate the development of the refueling hoses with the goal of entering commercial production in 2027.

Heavy-duty transportation is responsible for 12% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and current zero-emission solutions do not meet the needs of heavy-duty vehicles. Battery electric trucks provide limited range and add 5,000+ pounds to the weight of the truck, reducing the payload available to haul cargo. Current hydrogen trucks, which store hydrogen as a compressed gas onboard, offer improved performance relative to battery electric trucks but still fail to meet the required range and payload of heavy-duty vehicles. Cryo-compressed hydrogen (CcH₂) achieves an 87% improvement in density relative to 700 bar compressed hydrogen and a 33% improvement over liquid hydrogen, allowing CcH₂ trucks to achieve diesel-equivalent range and payload.

Development of new infrastructure and components is required to support commercialization of CcH₂,and Verne and LifeGuard’s partnership will establish a US-based supply of high-flow CcH₂ safety hoses that enable fueling of trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles. The partnership will combine LifeGuard’s expertise in safety-critical solutions for cryogenic fluid transfer and Verne’s expertise in CcH₂ and access to world class testing facilities. The partners will collaborate to develop and test hoses suitable for refueling heavy-duty vehicles with CcH₂in less than 10 minutes.

Cryo-compressed hydrogen is a platform technology with applications across heavy-duty transportation and hydrogen distribution. The flexible hose technology can be adapted to serve sectors including trucking, aviation, port vehicles, mining and maritime transportation.

Verne develops cryo-compressed hydrogen storage tanks and refueling equipment that converts gaseous hydrogen into CcH₂. In 2023, Verne completed drive testing of a CcH₂ storage system onboard a vehicle and demonstrated a world-record 29 kg storage tank at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, equivalent to the tank size that would be used in heavy-duty trucking. Verne recently announced the first demonstration of CcH₂ onboard a Class 8 Truck, set to take place in late 2024. 

Verne is focused on developing the supplier base for CcH₂. In November2023, Verne announced a partnership with ARTA to develop nozzles and receptacles for CcH₂ fueling. Last month, Verne and Cryostar announced a new partnership to develop pumps for “future-proofed” hydrogen fueling stations. Verne’s partnership with LifeGuard Technologies is an important next step in enabling the full ecosystem of suppliers for CcH₂ fueling solutions.

“The trucking industry is demanding greater vehicle range and lower weight than current zero-emission options offer, and cryo-compressed hydrogen is well placed to meet the need given its greater hydrogen storage density,” said Ted McKlveen, Co-founder & CEO of Verne. “LifeGuard is a best-in-class developer of flexible safety hoses and is the ideal partner for developing the solutions needed to enable a massive transition to CcH₂.”

“At a time when the hydrogen industry is on the cusp of massive expansion, it is critical that safety leads the way. Now, high-flow CcH₂ hydrogen transfer hoses will have the same technological safety features that our CNG, LPG,NH₃ and high pressure hydrogen and atmospheric gas hoses have enjoyed for more than 20 years,” stated Andy Abrams, Executive Vice President of LifeGuard Technologies. “We look forward to working with Verne, a true leader in the hydrogen industry, and to offering this new hose design to our Compressed Gas and Petrochemical customers through our global network of locations helping to drive LifeGuard Safety Hose adoption even further into the hydrogen industry.”

About Verne

Verne was founded in 2020 to develop high-density hydrogen storage solutions required to decarbonize heavy-duty transportation. Verne’s platform unlocks zero-emission operations in sectors including trucking, aviation, port vehicles, mining, and hydrogen distribution. Verne is financially supported by leading commercial entities, including Trucks Venture Capital, Collaborative Fund, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, Next Era Energy Resources, United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund, Caterpillar VC, and Newlab. Verne is also supported by Breakthrough Energy Fellows, the Department of Energy’s ARPA-E, The U.S. Army, Alberta Innovates and other agencies.

For more information, visit www.verneh2.com.

Company contact: contact@verneh2.com

About LifeGuard Technologies

LifeGuard Technologies is a safety technology company with its headquarters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and satellite affiliated factories in Bethlehem, PA; Ontario, Canada; Motala, Sweden; Faridabad, India and Melbourne, Australia. The company’s patented and patent-pending safety hose technology has become a global standard for all industries, applications and pressures. The company’s roots began with Joe Abrams’ work in cryogenics in 1958 – and today, the company has hoses worldwide in all industries and applications. More than 500,000 hoses with this technology have been sold since its invention including to all Tier One and Tier Two gas companies, making it the ‘Hose of Choice’ for the industrial and compressed gas industry.  

For more information, visit: https://lifeguard-tech.com/

Company contact: info@lifeguard-tech.com

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San Francisco, California & Whittier, California, July 2, 2024 — Cryostar and Verne announced a Memorandum of Understanding to develop a full suite of cryo-compressed hydrogen (CcH2) fueling solutions for heavy-duty station developers and heavy-duty fleets. The two companies will jointly develop and demonstrate technology for “future-proofed” heavy-duty hydrogen stations capable of dispensing both compressed hydrogen and CcH2.

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Read the full press release: https://cryostar.com/cryostar-and-verne-partner-to-develop-cryo-compressed-hydrogen-fueling-solutions-for-heavy-duty-vehicles/

Verne was awarded funding through the U.S. Army Energy Demand Reduction and Clean Energy Tech SBIR program and will conduct feasibility analysis on cryo-compressed hydrogen vehicles

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San Francisco, California, May 29, 2024 — Verne received an award to research cryo-compressed hydrogen (CcH2) vehicles for the U.S. Army. Hydrogen is an alternative fuel that can be generated on-site near the edge of operations, removing reliance on complex fuel supply chains and lowering all-in fuel costs. Cryo-compressed hydrogen is a novel form of hydrogen storage that maximizes hydrogen density, extending vehicle range without adding extra weight. During this project, Verne will work with the U.S. Army Ground Vehicle System Center and vehicle manufacturers to gather requirements and model the operational impact of adopting CcH2 solutions for medium and heavy-duty vehicles used in U.S. Army operations.

The U.S. military is the largest consumer of oil in the world, using more than 100 million barrels of oil annually. In 2021, the U.S. military emitted 51 million metric tons of CO2, greater than the total emission footprint of more than 70% of countries. However, the U.S. military has placed a strong emphasis on decarbonizing their operations: the U.S. Army released their first comprehensive Climate Strategy in 2022, with the goal of reaching net zero emissions from Army installations by 2045. Investing in clean energy research will enable the U.S. Army to achieve these climate targets, develop supply chain resiliency, and remain at the cutting edge of important frontier technologies like CcH2.

The U.S. Department of Defense has long been a leading driver of innovation, responsible for developing critical technologies with benefits extending far beyond military applications. The U.S. Department of Defense drove early semiconductor development in the 1950s, created the precursor to the modern internet in the 1960s and built the first Global Position System (GPS) in the 1970s. The U.S. Department of Defense is now leading development of alternative energy technologies to increase operational capabilities and meet their energy targets.

Verne’s cryo-compressed hydrogen technology involves cooling and compressing hydrogen to achieve the maximum hydrogen density at 73 g/L internal density, a 33% improvement over liquid hydrogen and an 87% improvement over traditional 700 bar compressed gas hydrogen. This best-in-class energy density leads to greater range and payload, enhancing operational capabilities.

“The U.S. Army has been responsible for advancing many critical technologies and Verne is excited to work together to advance cryo-compressed hydrogen,” said David Jaramillo, Verne Co-founder and CTO. “Verne’s mission is to provide zero-emission technologies that do not require costly performance trade-offs, and this is a vote of confidence that the U.S. Army believes CcH2 can meet their strict performance standards.”

Decisive Point, a venture capital firm with expertise in navigating the federal and commercial markets will provide strategic support on this award: “The DoD continues to fund technologies that enable its platforms to leverage new fuel sources like hydrogen to provide an advantage when it comes to resilient supply chains and long-range capability,” said Eric Horan, Partner at Decisive Point and former Government Contracting Officer for the U.S. Navy.

Since its founding in 2020, Verne has been dedicated to providing high-density hydrogen storage systems that meet the needs of heavy-duty transportation. Last year, Verne announced a CcH2 storage record during stationary demonstration of a 29 kg storage tank at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and completed the first testing of their CcH2 storage system on-board a vehicle. Verne recently announced a project to demonstrate the first CcH2 Class 8 Truck. Verne is working with key trucking fleets and OEMs, as well as leading partners across aviation, ports, mining, and hydrogen distribution & refueling.

About Verne

Verne was founded in 2020 to develop high-density hydrogen storage solutions required to decarbonize heavy-duty transportation. Verne’s platform unlocks zero-emission operations in sectors including trucking, aviation, port vehicles, mining and hydrogen distribution. Verne is financially supported by leading commercial entities, including Trucks Venture Capital, Collaborative Fund, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund, Caterpillar VC, and Newlab. Verne is also supported by Breakthrough Energy Fellows, the Department of Energy’s ARPA-E, The U.S. Army, Alberta Innovates and other agencies. For more information, visit www.verneh2.com.

Company contact: contact@verneh2.com