South Africa has the world's largest reserves of platinum group metals (PGMs), which are essential for many hydrogen technologies.
Amid that backdrop, US's ET Energy and South Africa's Isondo Precious Metals have signed an MoU to jointly develop and validate a next-generation proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer stack leveraging South Africa's PGM resources to strengthen localized hydrogen technology manufacturing and advance critical minerals beneficiation.
This collaboration underlines the strategic importance of PGMs in enabling next generation clean energy technologies. It also shows how South Africa's mineral resources can support high-value manufacturing and technology exports.
What is happening is that ET Energies' advanced electrolyzer stack engineering is being combined with Isondo's vertically integrated PGM capabilities, creating a development pathway that spans catalyst precursor production, membrane electrode assembly (MEA) manufacturing, electrochemical testing and closed-loop PGM recovery.
Together, ET Energies and Isondo aim to accelerate the commercialization of high performance PGM-based PEM electrolyzer technology up to full electrolyzer production with other partners around the world, while supporting the objectives of South Africa's Hydrogen Society Roadmap, which emphasizes industrialization, localization of hydrogen technologies and value addition to the country's vital mineral resources.
ET Energies has developed a commercial PEM electrolyzer stack platform incorporating proprietary bipolar plate, compression architecture, cooling system and seal technologies.
With the stack architecture reaching a high level of technological maturity, the next phase will focus on integrating advanced catalyst-coated membranes and optimized MEAs to the platform.
This phase will include structured break-in procedures and durability testing to generate field-relevant performance data prior to pilot deployment.
Through the partnership, Isondo will provide access to automotive-standard clean-room assembly facilities and electrochemical testing infrastructure to support stack assembly, integration and validation.
The collaboration creates a development pathway that can extend from stack-level verification to fully integrated electrolyzer systems, enabling widespread industrial deployment.
By combining ET Energies' electrolyzer engineering expertise with Isondo's capabilities in PGM processing and catalyst development, the partnership brings together the complementary strengths of both countries to accelerate innovation while strengthening resilient clean energy supply chains.
Beyond stack integration, the partnership supports the development of a localized hydrogen technology ecosystem based in critical mineral beneficiation.
Isondo Precious Metals, based in the OR Tambo Industrial Development Area, east of Johannesburg, is expanding capabilities in a number of key areas, including:
- catalyst precursor production;
- Catalyst synthesis for PEM electrolysis;
- MEA fabrication and electrochemical characterization;
- Recycling of spent catalysts and MEA; And
- Recovery and purification of PGMs for reuse in hydrogen technologies.
circular economy
By establishing closed-loop recovery pathways for PGMs, the collaboration promotes a circular economy model for hydrogen technologies, improving supply security, reducing lifecycle costs and strengthening the long-term sustainability of electrolyzer manufacturing.
“This partnership represents an important step towards building a competitive and localized hydrogen technology ecosystem,” said the CEO of ET Energies. derek luby It was said.
“By combining advanced stack engineering with in-house materials innovation and testing capabilities, we are scaling our technology from prototype to commercial electrolyzer system, contributing to South Africa’s hydrogen industrialization strategy,” Luby said in a media release. Engineering News & Mining Weekly.
“South Africa has the world's largest reserves of platinum group metals, which are essential for many hydrogen technologies,” Isondo Precious Metals CEO Vinay Somera told.
“Through this collaboration, we are building an integrated value chain – from catalyst precursor production to MEA manufacturing and PGM recycling – that strengthens supply security while enabling a circular and sustainable hydrogen economy,” he said.