(From left) Manipaddy Krishna Kumar, Chief Operating Officer; Michael Gryseels, Chairman; and Goutam Dalapati, Chief Technology Officer of HYDGEN, at the production facility.
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
HYDGEN — a deep-tech start-up developing next-generation anion exchange membrane (AEM) electrolyzers for decentralised, on-demand green hydrogen production — has raised $5 million in a mix of equity and debt round led by Transition VC, with participation from Cloudberry Pioneer Investments (Europe), Moringa Ventures (Singapore), and strategic family offices from India and Singapore.
With this fundraise, HYDGEN will upgrade its production facility in Mangaluru to a semi-automated manufacturing line; enhance its single-stack capacity to 250 kW; and expand its footprint in Japan, Europe, and the Middle East, where industrial hydrogen adoption and policy support are growing rapidly.
A media statement said the investment will accelerate HYDGEN’s efforts to make ultra-pure, cost-efficient hydrogen available directly at the point of use through its proprietary AEM electrolyzer technology.
It said HYDGEN’s platform combines the affordability of alkaline systems with the efficiency and flexibility of PEM (proton exchange membrane) technology, while eliminating the need for expensive platinum-group metals. Its modular AEM electrolyzers deliver ultra-pure hydrogen at the lowest unit cost in the industry, enabling industries to generate hydrogen on-site and on-demand, drastically reducing logistics costs and improving supply resilience. HYDGEN’s current product range spans from 1 kW to 100 kW systems, with a 250-kW single stack in development to serve industrial-scale requirements.
Quoting Manipaddy Krishna Kumar, Co-Founder and COO of HYDGEN, the statement said: “Many discussions about hydrogen focus on its role in a clean energy future, but the urgent opportunity is enabling industries to have hydrogen where and when they need it, with purity they can trust. Our AEM electrolyzers allow companies to produce hydrogen on-site at a competitive cost, solving supply chain challenges today while preparing them for the broader transition to green hydrogen in the years ahead.”
Over the past year, HYDGEN has launched pilot deployments across India, Singapore, and other regions in Southeast Asia, spanning industrial applications, research institutions, and mobility. Several partners have begun expanding their pilots into commercial-scale operations, validating both HYDGEN’s technological edge and the strong market demand for decentralized hydrogen generation, the statement said.
Mohamed Shoeb Ali, Managing Partner at Transition VC, said: “HYDGEN is the first team we’ve seen capable of scaling AEM electrolyzers to true industrial levels while maintaining cost leadership. This is no longer a research initiative but a commercially ready platform serving industries already dependent on hydrogen today.”
Khoong Hock Yun, Managing Partner at Moringa Ventures, said: “Global decarbonization requires solutions that are not just green but practical. HYDGEN’s approach to decentralized hydrogen production can reshape the global supply chain by making hydrogen generation efficient, resilient, and accessible at the point of use.”
Incubated as a spin-off from the National University of Singapore, HYDGEN has established a cross-border presence with research and development and manufacturing capabilities in India and Southeast Asia.
Published on October 27, 2025
