en.Wedoany.com Reported - Founded by Dr. Jani Shibuya, a graduate of the University of Aberdeen, Hychor aims to provide low-cost, on-site hydrogen production solutions for off-grid coastal communities and industries seeking decarbonization. After completing a round of equity financing, the company has officially spun out from the university and opened a new R&D facility in Aberdeen in early May 2026. Hychor has integrated into Scotland's growing energy transition ecosystem and is preparing to seize global opportunities.
Dr. Shibuya discovered a passion for electrochemistry while pursuing a chemistry degree at the University of Aberdeen, subsequently completing his PhD under the supervision of Professor Angel Cuesta, with research covering electrocatalyst surface behavior, sustainable flow batteries, and seawater desalination technologies. His academic achievements led the university to nominate him for the 2025 Germany Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting.
Alongside his research, Dr. Shibuya embarked on an entrepreneurial path, securing spots in multiple accelerator programs and traveling across the UK and Europe to pitch his technology to industry and investors. In 2025, he was awarded the Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Fellowship, allowing him to work full-time on preparing Hychor's investment and commercial launch.
Dr. Shibuya founded Hychor in 2024 and serves as CEO, with co-founder and COO Alex Colledge and three new employees joining the team. The company plans to launch an industrial pilot project in 2027. Dr. Shibuya stated that Hychor's long-term goal is to have a global impact in hydrogen and renewable energy production, helping address the two pressing challenges of energy security and freshwater scarcity. He emphasized that by eliminating the need for freshwater—a globally increasingly scarce resource—the technology offers a path to a cleaner, more resilient energy system, aiming to deliver hydrogen quickly where and when it is needed, rather than waiting for slow infrastructure projects. He also noted that Hychor aims to create high-quality jobs in Northeast Scotland, attract investment to support the region's transition to a diversified energy economy, and maximize the use of the area's abundant wind resources. Dr. Shibuya particularly thanked the University of Aberdeen's Technology Transfer Office and the School of Natural and Computing Sciences for their support, stating that these institutions were invaluable from patent development to securing funding and growth space, and that his mentor Professor Cuesta also played a key role in his academic career and technological creation.
Dr. Barbara Gorgoni, Technology Transfer Executive at the University of Aberdeen, stated that spin-out companies like Hychor demonstrate the strength of the university's research community and the value of ongoing support for entrepreneurial academics. She added that this case exemplifies the impact-oriented innovation model the university aims to foster, and revealed that the team worked closely with Dr. Shibuya to develop a strong patent portfolio and a clear commercial pathway to bring this promising technology from the lab to market. She looks forward to continued collaboration during the technology scaling and global market engagement phases.
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