ZeroAvia has announced that it will build a major manufacturing facility for production of its hydrogen-electric powertrains at the
Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS), close to
Glasgow Airport in Renfrewshire.
ZeroAvia’s Hydrogen Centre of Excellence will support the company in a range of manufacturing operations relating to powertrain production and testing and will also be the company’s primary location for production of advanced high-temperature PEM (HTPEM) fuel cell stacks and supporting systems. With nearly 3,000 full engine and component pre-orders agreed with airlines and OEMs — corresponding to over $10 billion in future revenues — the company is advancing its production operations to meet demand.
The new facility will complement ZeroAvia’s Propulsion Centre of Excellence in Washington State which is focusing primarily on electric motors and power electronics. The firm also has plans to expand its R&D and aircraft testing centre at
Cotswold Airport in Gloucestershire.
The project in Scotland, which will unlock millions in private investment and support hundreds of jobs over the next few years, has been made possible by a £9 million Regional Selective Assistance grant from
Scottish Enterprise. This follows an equity investment of £20 million from the Scottish National Investment Bank into ZeroAvia as part of the company’s Series C funding, with the UK National Wealth Fund investing £32 million as a cornerstone-level investor in the round. The Series C funding round was led by Airbus, Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital and NEOM Investment Fund.
Fuel cell and powertrain technologyThe UK Government awarded ZeroAvia and consortium partners £10.5 million to develop the advanced HTPEM fuel cells in 2024 via the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) programme in conjunction with the Department for Business and Trade and Innovate UK. The UK Government has awarded ZeroAvia £18.5 million total R&D funding since 2019 to develop its fuel cell and powertrain technology.
This support alongside more than $250 million of private investment has enabled ZeroAvia to make rapid progress: flying the world’s first hydrogen-electric commercial-scale aircraft in 2020, more than doubling the power output to again fly the world’s largest hydrogen-electric aicraft in 2023, manufacturing and shipping fuel cell systems to customers, and securing significant regulatory traction for the certification of its powertrains.
Scotland First Minister John Swinney and Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray spoke at an event at Glasgow Airport earlier this week to launch ZeroAvia’s plans for its manufacturing facility at AMIDS.