Green aviation firm ZeroAvia has announced it has signed a deal with UAE-based clean energy investment giant Masdar to explore hydrogen production and supply projects across North America, Europe, and the Gulf to enable the refuelling of its zero-emission aircraft. ZeroAvia said the partnership will also look to establish clean flight operations in the UAE, where Masdar is based.
The partnership forms part of Masdar's plans to establish itself as a "green hydrogen leader", which has seen the clean tech investment giant commit to delivering strategic projects and building scalable platforms in a number of key markets. The company is aiming to deliver one million tonnes of green hydrogen production a year by 2030.
Masdar said its Green Hydrogen division is already involved in a number of major green aviation projects, adding that it expects its new partnership with ZeroAvia to power the world's first hydrogen powered commercial flights. ZeroAvia, meanwhile, said it is working with some of the world's largest energy companies to enable the provision of the hydrogen production and refuelling infrastructure that will be critical to its goal of delivering commercial hydrogen-electric routes from 2025.
The green aviation firm said it wants to see infrastructure in place at commercial airports to refuel up to 90-seat zero emission aircraft by the end of the decade. With every such aircraft requiring as much as one ton of hydrogen for a short regional flight, ZeroAvia highlighted how even a small commercial airport could drive tonnes of demand daily.
Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, Masdar's CEO, welcomed the news of the partnership and added that the company "looks forward to working with innovative partners like ZeroAvia to advance decarbonisation in hard-to-abate sectors, such as aviation".