ZeroAvia attracts further support from American and new investment from Japan’s ITOCHU – GreenAir News

Hydrogen propulsion developer ZeroAvia has secured additional investment funding from American Airlines and new backing from Japanese industrialist ITOCHU Corporation, as it progresses plans to certificate its entry-level hydrogen-electric powertrains in 2025. American upped its stake in ZeroAvia just days after the failure of rival company Universal Hydrogen, in which the airline was also a headline investor, and announced a “conditional” agreement to buy 100 ZeroAvia powertrains to convert regional jets to cleaner power. ITOCHU has signed a wide-ranging agreement in which it will support the company’s expansion across Asia. Universal’s demise has cemented ZeroAvia’s position as the biggest emergent supplier of hydrogen-electric powertrains to replace fossil-fuelled engines on turboprop planes and regional jets, and later to power new narrowbody aircraft.

American’s agreement to strengthen its ZeroAvia partnership coincided with the airline’s release of its latest sustainability report, in which CEO Robert Isom warned that decarbonisation “is not happening at the pace we need.”

“Game-changing technologies like hydrogen, which American is also helping to advance, are expected to be important elements of the long-term solution for decarbonising aviation,” said Isom. “But to get from here to there, we need manufacturers to invest in the incremental but meaningful advances in airframe and engine technologies that can come online with the next generation of aircraft.”

ZeroAvia, which is jointly based in the UK and USA, is developing a family of hydrogen-electric engines, and is currently using a pair of Dornier 228 turboprop testbeds to reach certification next year of its ZA600 powertrain for 9-19 seat aircraft, offering a 300-mile flight range. It is also actively progressing its larger ZA2000 powertrain to provide cleaner propulsion and up to 700 miles of range for aircraft of 40-80 seats, targeting a 2027 launch.

American Airlines announced an initial investment in ZeroAvia in August 2022, two months before it also revealed a strategic equity investment in Universal Hydrogen. It did not disclose the value or terms of either deal, or for its newly increased stake in ZeroAvia, which it said was part of that company’s Series C financing round.

Nor has American detailed the caveats attached to its conditional purchase agreement for 100 ZeroAvia powertrains, which could replace the fossil-fuelled engines on regional jets including Bombardier CRJ700s operated by the airline on a range of regional routes. An engine deal was first flagged by American in 2022, when announcing it had “the opportunity” to order up to 100 engines from ZeroAvia’s hydrogen-electric powertrain development programme. 

American said its increased investment in ZeroAvia and intention to buy hydrogen-electric powertrains formed part of a much broader strategy to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Its plan includes extensive fleet renewal and investments in sustainable aviation fuel from suppliers including Infinium, an emerging producer of e-fuels. American was also the first customer for Graphyte, a US carbon removal and storage startup backed by Breakthrough Energy Ventures.       

ZeroAvia’s founder and CEO, Val Miftakhov, said his company’s hydrogen-electric powertrains would emit only low temperature water vapour, while low intensity electrical systems would potentially deliver significant cost efficiencies.

“In signing this purchase agreement and furthering its investment, American is supporting our mission of innovation for clean aircraft propulsion,” said Miftakhov, describing the airline’s increased backing as “a good signal that ZeroAvia is delivering on our technology roadmap. The solutions that can serve the largest airlines are within reach, and the clean future of flight is coming.”

ZeroAvia claims almost 2,000 pre-orders for its engines from multiple major airlines, with “future revenue potential” exceeding $10 billion.

The additional partnership announcement with ITOCHU Corporation further strengthens ZeroAvia following American’s increased interest and the failure of Universal, while also ensuring increased focus on ZeroAvia at the forthcoming Farnborough International Airshow.

 While ITOCHU did not detail the scale of its new investment, it announced its appointment as ZeroAvia’s sales representative for Asia and had additionally signed a MoU for wide-ranging collaboration across the region in areas including maintenance, airport infrastructure and hydrogen infrastructure.

“It is expected that there will be approximately 44,000 commercial aircraft in 2042, 1.6 times the number in 2023,” said ITOCHU. “With IATA and ICAO announcing their goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, the decarbonisation of the aviation industry is an international challenge. To solve the issue, new technologies in addition to SAF, such as hydrogen aircraft, are necessary.”  

ZeroAvia also revealed it has developed “revolutionary” AI-driven, scalable smart microgrid optimisation software that aims to minimise the cost of green hydrogen production for clean aviation and other applications. Testing in California of its Smart Hydrogen AI Production Software (SHAIPS) has shown in excess of a 20% reduction of the levelized cost of hydrogen compared to an electrolyser generating hydrogen based on the average electricity wholesale price, reports the company. In the US, the Department of Energy is targeting $1 per kg of hydrogen by 2030, while the Inflation Reduction Act established up to $3 per kg as part of a production tax credit.

American’s 2023 Sustainability Report was released by the airline on the same day it announced its increased commitments to ZeroAvia, and pointedly referred to the sector’s limited progress in reducing aviation’s harmful emissions.

“We are taking concrete steps within our operations and pulling all the levers we can to drive progress,” said American’s CEO in his introduction to the report. “But the reality is the action we can take within our own operations – or the scale of investment we can absorb in our low-margin business – will never be sufficient on its own.

“Aviation is widely recognised as one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise. Getting there is going to require action and investment across the public and private sectors, and quite frankly, that’s not happening at the pace or scale we need.

“Sustainable aviation fuel is a perfect example. American has a goal to use 10% SAF in 2030. In 2023 we used 2.7 million gallons of SAF – the most we’ve used in a single year – but it was still less than 1%. That wasn’t for lack of trying. We’ve signed commitments with multiple SAF producers, at a premium, to try to secure supply and, in the case of Infinium, to help attract capital to bring new, lower-carbon SAF technology to market sooner. But the volume of SAF available today and likely to be ready over the next several years is a tiny fraction of what’s needed.

“It’s a risk for me to come out and say that American’s ability to achieve our 2030, 2035 and 2050 climate goals is in jeopardy. But in my mind, the bigger risk is failing to sound the alarm that there’s an urgent need for more and faster action across the public and private sectors.”

Image: ZeroAvia