Hydrogen lift-off: Intelligent Energy secures £17m programme to scale its UK-developed aviation fuel cell tech

Business Wire

5 hours ago

LOUGHBOROUGH, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Intelligent Energy (IE), one of the UK's leading hydrogen fuel cell manufacturers, has secured a £17 million programme to fast-track development of a new zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell system that could be powering commercial aircraft within the decade.
The award is from the ATI Programme, a partnership between the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI), the Department for Business & Trade and Innovate UK. It will support Project HEIGHTS – a three-year drive to develop IE's current 300kW modular aviation fuel cell platform for use in next-generation aircraft.
Initial applications include Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft and short-range commuter planes. IE's new fuel cell system – IE-FLIGHT™ 300 – is expected to enter early service in Part 23 aircraft (with up to 19 seats) by the end of the decade, with scale-up plans targeting larger (Part 25) regional aircraft in the 2030s.
The project addresses the key challenge with traditional fuel cell systems – how to keep the fuel cells at the correct operating temperature without introducing significant aircraft drag from cooling systems. In aviation particularly, minimising the heat exchanger size is critical to reduce mass and drag, and to optimise overall efficiency.
IE's patented direct water-injection technology uses air-cooled condensers with a smaller frontal area than conventional liquid glycol radiators. In Project HEIGHTS, IE will further develop this novel cooling method to achieve a significant reduction in heat exchanger size.
The investment comes as aviation faces rising pressure to cut emissions. Batteries remain constrained by weight and range, while hydrogen-electric propulsion is gaining traction as a cleaner, scalable alternative.
The project marks a major step forward for Intelligent Energy, and its fuel cell technology offers significant environmental and economic benefits to the aviation sector.
A switch to fuel cell systems across eVTOL, sub-regional and regional aircraft, as well as Auxiliary Power Units (APUs) on larger aircraft, could reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 25.6 million tonnes per year. IE estimates the total market value – encompassing both sales and servicing revenue – is £19.6 billion, and scaling up production could create as many as 1,600 new jobs.
'This programme is about getting hydrogen-powered aircraft in the air, and into service at scale, as quickly as possible,' David Woolhouse, Intelligent Energy CEO, said.
'We firmly believe that hydrogen will be the primary energy source for flight, initially for smaller aircraft but in the longer term for everything that flies. At Intelligent Energy, we have the IP built on 24 years' experience to give us confidence that we can be the technical leader in this sector. This project supports us in making our modular system even smaller, lighter and more scalable.'
HEIGHTS – which stands for Hydrogen Efficient fuel cell Integrated in a High Temperature System – builds on Intelligent Energy's previous involvement in H2GEAR, a separate ATI-backed programme led by GKN Aerospace. It leverages the company's extensive aviation experience, including powering the world's first manned fuel cell flight with Boeing in 2008.
The funding announcement is a significant milestone for IE's aviation division. In February, the company was named as a strategic partner in the UK Civil Aviation Authority's Hydrogen Challenge programme.
IE is also expanding its UK operations. In addition to its manufacturing base in Loughborough, the company is enhancing its test and validation capabilities with a new £7.1 million fuel cell test centre opening this summer in Northamptonshire.
'We are expanding at pace because the UK has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to consolidate its global lead in hydrogen aviation and build a strong domestic manufacturing capability,' said Woolhouse. 'The hydrogen economy for aviation will be a major industrial sector, and this support from ATI helps to keep our technology here in the UK. For investors focused on green technology and mobility applications, HEIGHTS reinforces our unique value – clear IP differentiation, proximity to market, and a regulatory tailwind that's only getting stronger.'
Jacqueline Castle, Chief Technology Officer at the Aerospace Technology Institute said: 'Hydrogen as a fuel source is an essential part of the ATI's technology roadmaps for future power and propulsion systems. We are delighted to be supporting Intelligent Energy's HEIGHTS programme, which builds upon its prior expertise in fuel cell development to encompass novel means of addressing thermal management challenges associated with aircraft integration.
'The ATI's FlyZero project identified the need for high-temperature fuel cell systems and world-class expertise on thermal management within the UK. This project brings the two together to develop what we expect to be a compelling, power dense solution for zero-carbon flight.'
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About Intelligent Energy Limited
Intelligent Energy is a leader in the development and manufacture of cutting-edge hydrogen fuel cells that overcome the limitations of conventional battery-powered systems.
Established in 2001, the privately-owned company, which has 600 patents in place, has been innovating for more than two decades in the automotive, aerospace, power generation, telecoms, materials handling and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) sectors.
Headquartered in Loughborough UK, Intelligent Energy has a global reach, with activities spanning key markets in the UK, US, China, South Korea, and Japan.
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