HiiROC

What HiiROC does

HiiROC is a UK-based industrial technology company founded in 2019 that develops and commercialises a proprietary process called Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE). TPE uses electrical fields in patented plasma torches to split hydrocarbons (biomethane, flare gas, or natural gas) into clean hydrogen and solid carbon black without producing CO2 emissions. The company claims the technology uses one-fifth of the electricity required by water electrolysis and is cost-competitive with Steam Methane Reforming without requiring Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage (CCUS) infrastructure. A wholly-owned subsidiary, Zeleno Ltd (established 2020 in Edinburgh), extends the core platform into Thermal Plasma Reforming (TPR) for Sustainable Aviation Fuel production.

The company operates a technology-licensing and point-of-use hydrogen production model, targeting industrial decarbonisation (steel, cement, chemicals), power generation, maritime shipping (methanol and ammonia fuels), aviation (SAF), and waste-to-energy operators. Revenue streams are planned across direct hydrogen sales, carbon black by-product sales, e-methanol and SAF production, and technology licensing to strategic partners such as Tokyo Gas. Distribution is achieved through direct enterprise sales, pipeline infrastructure partnerships (East Midlands Pipeline), and an investor network that includes Centrica, Cemex Ventures, GKN, Hyundai/Kia, and World Kinect.

HiiROC is pre-revenue with first commercial units planned for 2026. Demonstrated commercial traction is currently limited to a turquoise hydrogen demonstration plant at Centrica's Brigg peaker plant in Lincolnshire, with larger deployments under development at the Thainstone Energy Park in Scotland (up to 200,000 tonnes/year waste processing) and via East Midlands Pipeline (up to 50 tonnes/day hydrogen). The company has raised approximately £36 million in cumulative disclosed funding, including a £26m round in November 2021 (led by Melrose Industries' first equity-stake investment) and a £10m MarineFifty investment in December 2025, and was awarded an LCHS1 production contract under the UK hydrogen allocation round.

Name

HiiROC

Legal name

HiiROC Limited

Website

https://hiiroc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

HiiROC is a UK clean hydrogen technology company that uses proprietary Thermal Plasma Electrolysis to convert biomethane, flare gas, or natural gas into zero-CO2 hydrogen and solid carbon black for industrial, power, maritime, and aviation customers, with first commercial units planned for 2026.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clean Hydrogen Production Technology

NAICS

Industrial Gas Manufacturing (32512), Industrial Gas Manufacturing (325120)

SIC

Industrial Organic Chemicals (2860)

akta.pro primary industry

Hydrogen & Derivative Fuels for Industry (H₂, Ammonia, Methanol) (EUABAJAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Hydrogen (Industrial & Mobility) (IMAEACAB), E‑Fuels & Synthetic Hydrocarbons (e‑kerosene, e‑diesel, e‑gasoline, e‑methane) (EUABAIAA), Solvent/Sorbent/Catalyst Materials & Capture Equipment Manufacturing (Absorbers, Strippers, Heat Exchangers) (EUAAALAJ)

Keywords

• Clean hydrogen production
• Thermal plasma electrolysis
• Turquoise hydrogen technology
• Carbon black by-product
• Sustainable aviation fuel

Headquarters

HQ city

Kingston upon Hull

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Hydrogen Sales: Sale of clean hydrogen produced via Thermal Plasma Electrolysis to industrial customers, power generators, and maritime sectors. Point-of-use production model avoids transport/storage costs.
2. Carbon Black Sales: Sale of solid carbon black by-product from hydrogen production process to rubber, plastics, inks, and other manufacturing sectors.
3. Technology Licensing: Potential licensing of TPE technology to partners for deployment at their facilities (e.g., Tokyo Gas partnership).
4. E-Methanol and SAF Production: Production of e-methanol and Sustainable Aviation Fuel by integrating hydrogen with captured CO2 for maritime and aviation sectors.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

HiiROC fundamentally produces clean (turquoise) hydrogen through its proprietary Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE) process, which uses electrical fields in patented plasma torches to split biomethane, flare gas, or natural gas into hydrogen and solid carbon black with zero CO2 emissions. The hydrogen is sold to industrial customers for power generation, industrial decarbonisation, maritime fuels, and aviation applications, while the carbon black by-product is sold into rubber, plastics, and inks markets. Technology licensing and co-development partnerships (e.g., Tokyo Gas, East Midlands Pipeline, MarineFifty) extend the offering geographically.

Product overview

HiiROC is a clean hydrogen technology company offering a portfolio anchored by its proprietary Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE) core technology, which converts biomethane, flare gas, or natural gas into zero-CO2 'turquoise hydrogen' and solid carbon black. The company operates as a platform business, with TPE serving as the foundational process, supplemented by sub-products including Thermal Plasma Reforming (TPR) for SAF production and a planned 150,000-tonnes-per-year clean methanol plant — both leveraging the same core hydrogen output. The carbon black by-product complements the offering as a monetisable, zero-emission material. Zeleno Ltd, a Scottish subsidiary established in 2020, manages SAF-specific development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clean (Turquoise) Hydrogen Production via Thermal Plasma Electrolysis Zero-CO2 turquoise hydrogen produced from biomethane, flare gas, or natural gas using HiiROC's proprietary Thermal Plasma Electrolysis (TPE) process, supplied to industrial customers, power generators, maritime fuel producers, and aviation fuel developers via point-of-use deployment at customer sites.
• Carbon Black (zero-emission by-product) A pure, stable, zero-emission carbon black produced as a co-product of the Thermal Plasma Electrolysis hydrogen process, sold to manufacturers of tyres, rubbers, plastics, inks, and toners, with additional applications in environmental remediation filters, soil enhancers, animal feeds, and high-performance and construction materials.
• Thermal Plasma Reforming (TPR) for Sustainable Aviation Fuel A Sustainable Aviation Fuel production pathway based on HiiROC's proprietary plasma technology, developed by wholly owned subsidiary Zeleno Ltd, designed to produce SAF at lower cost and carbon intensity than existing power-to-liquid pathways.
• Clean Methanol / E-Methanol Production (Planned) Planned large-scale e-methanol production combining HiiROC's turquoise hydrogen with captured CO2, intended for use as zero-emission marine fuel for shipping operators.

Quantifiable outcome

• One-fifth the electricity of water electrolysis
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Stratus Energy PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 January 2026Collaboration on SAF feasibility study. Stratus provides project development and delivery experience for decarbonisation solutions in heavy industry, shipping, and aviation.
• Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 January 2026Non-binding MoU signed 5 January 2025 to explore strategic partnership and potential future investment. Collaboration on HiiROC's TPE technology in Japan with option to expand to other regions. Joint assessment of decarbonisation opportunities for Tokyo Gas customers' operations and assets, and exploration of solid carbon by-product utilisation.
• East Midlands Pipeline LimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 November 2025Landmark Development Agreement to advance hydrogen deployment in East & West Midlands. HiiROC to provide TPE technology for biomethane conversion, producing up to 50 tonnes of hydrogen per day. EMP repurposing 63km pipeline for hydrogen storage and transport.
• Agile Energy Recovery LimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 October 2025Strategic collaboration to deploy HiiROC's TPE technology at Thainstone Energy Park in Inverurie, Scotland. Facility will process up to 200,000 tonnes of waste per year with potential integration to produce low-carbon e-methanol for maritime applications using captured CO2 and hydrogen.
• AirbusminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStakeholder expressing support for HiiROC's SAF feasibility study in Scotland
• Zeleno LtdcoreOthersScottish subsidiary of HiiROC established in 2020, focused on developing Thermal Plasma Reforming (TPR) technology for SAF production. Based in Edinburgh.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Hazer Group: Australian company using catalytic methane pyrolysis to produce hydrogen and synthetic graphite. Competes with HiiROC in the turquoise hydrogen space, although their solid carbon output is graphite rather than carbon black.
• Monolith Materials: US-based methane pyrolysis company producing clean hydrogen and carbon black via plasma technology. The closest direct competitor to HiiROC's TPE process, with an overlapping dual-revenue model (hydrogen + carbon black) and similar target end-markets.
• ITM Power: UK-listed PEM electrolyser manufacturer producing green hydrogen from water electrolysis. Competes for the same industrial decarbonisation and power generation customers as HiiROC, though via a fundamentally different production pathway.
• Nel ASA: Norwegian electrolyser manufacturer and hydrogen fueling station provider. A direct competitor in the clean hydrogen production equipment market, particularly for industrial-scale green hydrogen projects.

Emerging players

• C-2CNT: Early-stage US company developing carbon nanotube-enabled methane pyrolysis for hydrogen and carbon nanomaterials. Adjacent technology approach to HiiROC with similar plasma/pyrolysis fundamentals.
• LanzaTech: Carbon-to-value company producing ethanol and SAF from industrial off-gases via gas fermentation. Overlaps with HiiROC's SAF ambitions (Zeleno Ltd) and shares the waste-to-fuel thesis, though via a biological rather than plasma pathway.
• Velocys: SAF and renewable diesel producer using Fischer-Tropsch conversion. Competes in the same end-markets (aviation decarbonisation) as HiiROC's TPR/SAF sub-product, with a different production pathway.

Broad incumbents

• Plug Power: Large US hydrogen fuel cell and electrolyser company. A broad incumbent across the hydrogen value chain (production, equipment, mobility), competing with HiiROC for industrial and mobility hydrogen customers at greater scale but with higher-cost green hydrogen.
• Linde / Air Liquide: Global industrial gas majors producing hydrogen (predominantly grey/SMR today). Incumbents that HiiROC must displace or partner with for distribution, and who are actively investing in clean hydrogen alternatives.

Regional players

• HIF Global: Chile-headquartered e-fuels company producing e-methanol and e-gasoline from green hydrogen. A regional player in the e-methanol space where HiiROC also plans to compete (Agile Energy Scotland project), though using electrolysis rather than methane pyrolysis.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hii_roc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors9 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HiiROC