Ultra Safe Nuclear, Hyundai And SK Ecoplant Eye ‘Hydrogen Micro Hubs’

Ultra Safe Nuclear Corp., Hyundai Engineering and SK Ecoplant have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly research, develop and construct a carbon-free hydrogen microproduction hub in Seoul.

The companies also plan to jointly research and develop “Hydrogen Micro Hub” technologies over the next five years.

Carbon-free production of hydrogen is of intense interest to the aviation industry, which is looking for a cleaner way to fuel airliners as well as electric-vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The diminutive size of hydrogen molecules makes the element difficult to store and transport, causing some to be interested in producing it in small hubs at airports.

For the joint Hydrogen Micro Hub project, the partners aim to produce “pink hydrogen” using Ultra Safe’s Micro Modular Reactor and solid oxide electrolysis cells from Bloom Energy, executives of the three businesses said when they signed the MOU on April 20. Under the agreement, SK Ecoplant, a South Korean construction and engineering firm, will create the nuclear-power-based hydrogen production system using Bloom Energy’s electrolysis technology. Hyundai Engineering will oversee the micro-modular reactor balance of the plant as well as engineering, procurement and construction work.

There are several ways to make hydrogen. Pink hydrogen is created via electrolysis that is powered by a nuclear plant. Its production is considered one way to make carbon-free hydrogen, while another prominent product is “green hydrogen,” which uses electricity from solar panels or wind turbines. Most hydrogen currently comes from steam methane reformation—known as “gray hydrogen”—which creates greenhouse gases.

Ultra Safe’s Micro Modular Reactors are designed to produce 5-10 megawatts of electrical power and 15-30 megawatts of thermal power. The company plans to demonstrate its first units in 2026.

For the project, Hyundai Engineering and Ultra Safe plan to use a design based on a gas-cooled micro-modular nuclear power plant planned for testing at the Chalk River Laboratories Campus in Ontario.

“Compared to commercial pressurized water reactors, this technology can generate relatively high-temperature steam, enabling the use of [solid oxide electrolysis cells] operating at high temperatures, which can maximize hydrogen production efficiency with less energy,” the companies say.

SK Ecoplant has a joint venture with Bloom Energy called Bloom SK Fuel Cell that is already testing hydrogen production through electrolysis using a 130-kW-scale solid oxide electrolysis cell facility in Gumi, South Korea. The company is also working on a project to convert green hydrogen into ammonia or methanol, which are easier to store than hydrogen.