[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] BioX, a subsidiary of UCI, a KOSDAQ-listed company, has laid the foundation for the commercialization of Korean-style green hydrogen through the establishment of a corporate-affiliated research institute. With the dawn of the Joe Biden era in the United States, hydrogen is gaining attention as a beneficiary industry of eco-friendly policies.
UCI’s subsidiary BioX announced on the 26th that it has received approval from the Korea Industrial Technology Association to establish a corporate-affiliated research institute and is accelerating the commercialization of green hydrogen modules.
Having succeeded in a Korean-style green hydrogen demo test in collaboration with the U.S. company EAT (Electro-Active Technologies), BioX has strengthened its R&D capabilities in microbial electrolysis-based green hydrogen using tail liquor (anaerobic wastewater) through the establishment of this research institute. It is expected to install one green hydrogen module in the second half of this year to conduct commercialization tests.
Furthermore, the development of the ‘Green Hydrogen System (e-H2Gen)’ model product is expected to accelerate, which will likely speed up the renewable energy business including green hydrogen.
In particular, BioX plans to jointly file a patent in Korea with EAT for the U.S. patent related to microbial electrolysis-based green hydrogen production using waste resources held by EAT. This is expected to secure Korean-style green hydrogen production technology.
A company official stated, “We are continuing collaborations across all green hydrogen business fields, including liquefied hydrogen using green hydrogen and hydrogen fuel cells for drones, with companies such as Kolon Global, Metavista, and Wavelabs, while strengthening domestic and international industry-academia-research cooperation. The establishment of this research institute will further accelerate BioX’s green hydrogen commercialization,” he explained.
He added, “We are preparing to obtain venture company certification in the second half of the year to prove our technological capabilities and business feasibility, and will push forward with a technology-specialized IPO in the second half of next year by accelerating renewable energy businesses such as Korean-style green hydrogen commercialization.”
BioX has recruited Dr. Jung Daeyeol, a renewable energy expert from the global water treatment company LG Hitachi Water Solutions, as the head of the corporate-affiliated research institute.
Dr. Jung Daeyeol, the newly appointed director, is an expert with 25 years of experience who has successfully carried out numerous renewable energy projects utilizing waste gases and waste resources, and holds multiple related patents including hydrogen production using anaerobic digestion.
BioX CEO Lee Hojun explained the reason for the recruitment, saying, “He possesses outstanding abilities in biochemical processes and design, as well as a deep understanding of microbiology and renewable energy fields,” and expressed expectations that “he will contribute to the commercialization of Korean-style green hydrogen using waste resources currently underway.”
He added, “In line with Biden’s eco-friendly policies emphasizing carbon neutrality, we will do our best to build a domestic green hydrogen value chain.”
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