en.Wedoany.com Reported - On July 13, 2026, Lhyfe and Messer, the world's largest privately owned specialist industrial gas company, entered into a strategic partnership covering equity acquisition, long-term hydrogen supply, and industrial synergies. Messer will acquire a 30% stake in each of Lhyfe's four renewable hydrogen production plants located in France and Germany, with both parties simultaneously signing a ten-year renewable hydrogen supply agreement.
This transaction positions Messer as Lhyfe's long-term procurement customer, industrial partner, and project asset investor. The partnership fulfills Lhyfe's previously announced development priorities of expanding revenue through distribution channels, securing stable cash flows, and realizing the value of its own hydrogen production project assets, marking Lhyfe's first capital recovery from assets. The two companies are highly complementary: Messer brings decades of experience in hydrogen technology, applications, logistics, and gas distribution, while Lhyfe is a leading player in the development and operation of renewable hydrogen production assets.
The ten-year hydrogen supply agreement covers three Lhyfe production sites in France and one in Germany. Starting in 2026, Messer commits to minimum purchase volumes, which will increase annually, with total annual procurement reaching several hundred tons. Additionally, Messer plans to purchase half of the hydrogen production capacity from the three French projects. By holding a 30% stake in the four project vehicle companies, Messer demonstrates its confidence in Lhyfe's project execution capabilities, market positioning, and asset appreciation potential. Messer will contribute its mature expertise in the industrial gas sector, covering safety production, plant operations and maintenance, storage and logistics, gas processing, customer service, and multi-category gas distribution, to enhance project operational efficiency and risk resilience, accelerating the commercialization of production capacity. Through this collaboration, Messer secures a long-term, stable supply of renewable hydrogen from plants in France and Germany, including green hydrogen certified under RFNBO standards, integrating it into its multi-category gas product portfolio to meet the decarbonization needs of existing and new industrial customers.
This partnership will optimize Lhyfe's financial position in two ways: the long-term supply agreement with minimum purchase commitments provides stable, predictable, and recurring cash flows, while the sale of 30% stakes in the four hydrogen production projects further strengthens the company's capital reserves. Lhyfe will continue to fully consolidate the financial statements of the project vehicle companies while freeing up resources to focus on new projects with high maturity, secured orders, and significant value-added potential. This transaction completes Lhyfe's "renewable hydrogen asset development + operations" business model, marking the company's first realization of asset value through equity disposal while retaining majority stakes, benefiting from capacity growth, and continuing to serve as the exclusive operator of the four projects, earning ongoing operations and management service fees. The transaction is subject to lender approval and compliance with existing financing agreement terms, with closing expected within the coming months.
Peter Mohnen, CEO of Messer, stated that this cooperation agreement represents a significant milestone in the development of both companies, underscoring Messer's long-term commitment to the hydrogen industry. Securing a stable supply of large-scale renewable hydrogen strengthens Messer's ability to support customers across various industries in their decarbonization transitions. With growing market demand for renewable hydrogen, these production bases in France and Germany help optimize supply chains, reduce transportation distances, and lower carbon emissions from storage and logistics. Messer has always believed that proactively addressing today's energy challenges is a corporate responsibility, and this partnership is a key step toward building a more resilient, competitive, and low-carbon industrial system.
Matthieu Guesné, founder and CEO of Lhyfe, noted that the deep collaboration with Messer, a global leader in industrial gases with 125 years of industry heritage, sends a positive signal to the entire sector, validating the competitiveness of Lhyfe's business model and reflecting the accelerating adoption of renewable hydrogen across various industrial fields. Both parties share the view that renewable hydrogen will become a core pillar of the new industrial energy system. This partnership will strengthen Lhyfe's financial position, supporting the company in continuing to deliver large-scale, transformative energy projects and accelerating Europe's overall decarbonization process.
Messer is the world's largest privately owned specialist in industrial, medical, electronic, and specialty gases. Under the "Messer – Gases for Life" brand, it provides gas products, supporting services, and technical solutions in Asia, Europe, and the Americas, with over 12,000 employees globally. The company's customized gas solutions help customers improve production safety, sustainability, operational efficiency, and product quality, with clean hydrogen, carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), and oxy-fuel combustion technologies being core business segments driving industrial and transportation decarbonization. Founded in 1898 and controlled by the Messer family, the company reported consolidated revenue of approximately €4.5 billion in 2025.
Lhyfe is a European group focused on the energy transition, specializing in the production and supply of green and renewable hydrogen. In 2021, Lhyfe built the world's first industrial-scale green hydrogen production plant connected to a wind farm. In 2022, it launched the world's first offshore green hydrogen demonstration platform. In September 2025, Lhyfe became Europe's largest producer of RFNBO-certified green hydrogen from electrolysis. The company operates in 11 European countries, with 188 employees as of the end of December 2025, and is listed on Euronext Paris.
