Ontario grants HYGN Energy C$696K for hydrogen storage and off-grid EV charging
What's the deal? HYGN Energy has secured up to C$696,000 (about $500,000) from the Province of OntarioDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → through the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network (OVIN) to develop and demonstrate its hydrogen energy storage system. The grant anchors a project worth more than C$2 million, with over C$1.2 million in contributions from HYGN and its partners.
What's the endgame? The Newmarket-based clean technology company is building the HYGN Hydrogen Battery, an energy-storage system designed to deliver dispatchable electricity for industrial equipment and off-grid EV fast charging.
How does it work? Unlike a conventional electrochemical battery, the system stores energy by producing hydrogen and oxygen through electrolysis, then converts it back into electricity via a proprietary combustion-based generator. It uses no fuel cell and does not depend on deliveries of compressed hydrogen, since the gases are produced from electricity and water as needed.
The grant funds a real-world demonstration at an active Rainbow Concrete IndustriesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → site, where the battery will power a mobile concrete plant and an off-grid EV fast-charging station. Rainbow Concrete serves as the industrial host, while Debwewin-HYGN TechnologiesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → supports Indigenous engagement and deployment in northern and remote communities.
Why now? Many industrial and remote sites cannot add large electrical loads without costly, slow grid upgrades. The battery accepts power from off-peak grid, solar, wind, and geothermal sources, then dispatches it when electricity is unavailable, expensive, or insufficient.
What's next? Partners will evaluate the system's power output, storage performance, EV fast-charging capability, and potential to reduce peak demand. The project is expected to generate operating data to support commercialization and future deployment of modular hydrogen storage in Ontario and other markets.
The signal: The grant sits in roughly the bottom half of comparable funding rounds by size, reflecting its early, demonstration-stage nature. It points to Ontario's push to build clean technology manufacturing capacity and resilient power for grid-constrained sites.
Read more: citm.ca
Image credit: Idaho National Laboratory
