Stargate Hydrogen was founded in 2021 with a mission to make green hydrogen affordable for the hard-to-decarbonise industries such steel, fertilisers, chemicals, and refineries. The company’s focus is to improve electrolysers efficiency and cut costs by using novel ceramic catalysts and patented stack design.
The current line of products includes Alkaline Electrolyser Stacks starting from 0.5 MW all the way up to 5MW, designed for system integrators, and containerised Turnkey Electrolyser systems for project developers ranging from 1MW up to 10MW modules.
Interview with Marko Virkebau, CEO of Stargate Hydrogen.
A brief description of the company and its activities.
Marko Virkebau: Our products are active in several projects in Europe and beyond, producing hydrogen efficiently and reliably, and have been maintained with close support from our team of engineers. We deliver more than just hardware; we build solid partnerships.
Our products have also been tested by renowned independent research institutes such as ZSW and Fraunhofer, which confirmed that our electrolysers are reliable and cost-effective.
With €50M+ in funding from strong investors and IPCEI status, we were able to scale up our production capacity to 140 MW annually, and we can easily scale even more with a modular approach.
Our customers include Fortum, Utilitas, ABB, Rockfin, and others across Europe, Middle East, and India. They all receive extensive engineering support while integrating our products into their operations. We deliver tangible results through efficient and scalable hydrogen solutions. Together, we enable the industry of tomorrow.
What are the main areas of activity of the company?
M.V: At Stargate Hydrogen we are committed to improving the efficiency and cost of electrolyser, that is why we are heavily investing into R&D. Our activities range from developing new electrodes to the development of stacks and systems for large-scale projects.
What’s the news about new products/services?
M.V: Stargate Hydrogen’s latest products are the Starbase stack with 5 MW of power and the Aurora System with 10MW of power. The new products are designed to accelerate industrial decarbonisation via green hydrogen by providing compact, high-performance solutions that allow customers such as refineries, chemical plants, and steel manufacturers to produce green hydrogen directly on-site. Aurora, the 10MW electrolyser outdoor-ready system module, packs two 5 MW stacks and stands out with its record-low footprint of just 14.4 m² per MW, making it the most space-efficient alkaline electrolyser of its kind on the market.
What is the state of the market where you are currently active?
M.V: The market for green hydrogen has become a lot of pragmatic and realistic compared to a few years ago. There are fewer projects, but those projects are more realistic and have real business cases behind them.
What can you tell us about market trends?
M.V: The launch of our new products reflects the main trend on the market. We see less pilot projects and higher demand for larger projects, starting from 10MW and above. Market is active in regions that have low electricity prices, abundancy of renewables, regulative and investment clarity – the Nordics and Middle East are examples of those regions.
What are the most innovative products/services marketed?
M.V: There are many R&D projects being pushed on several fronts in the hydrogen sphere. At Stargate Hydrogen, we are proud to be part of several of them. We currently participate on 10 different R&D and demonstration projects, each one focusing on different untapped potential, from the DELYCIOUS Project that aims to create new Diagnostic tools for Electrolysers all the way to the Sea4Volt Project, our latest one, where a consortium of renowned institutions works on the development of a novel low temperature Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) electrolyser concept, able to operate efficiently, selectively, and durably with a direct seawater feed under a slight pH-gradient.
The technology we believe to be central for the future of electrolysis is built upon the proven alkaline electrolysis. We are complementing the Alkaline approach with breakthrough materials, resulting in a completely new class of electrolysers: ceramics-based alkaline electrolysers, that have high current densities, and high efficiencies, yet have no precious metals. We call it Stardust, and it results in significantly lower hydrogen production costs, making the electrolysers affordable for the end-users.
What estimations do you have for the end of 2025?
M.V: 2025 has been a successful year for Stargate Hydrogen. We have inaugurated our new factory, started ambitious R&D projects, secured new investments, including a strategic partnership with Repsol, and grew our team while keeping the company lean and agile. But the most important is that we delivered several products, to projects in many different countries, including Middle East and India. For the remaining part of 2025 we hope to continue signing more deals and keep delivering electrolysers that enable the industry of tomorrow.
