BILBAO, Spain--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 3, 2025--
H2SITE has been awarded the EIC (European Innovation Council) Accelerator program for a project aimed at deploying a first-of-its-kind ammonia cracking unit capable of producing 1 ton of high-purity hydrogen per day. The system is based on H2SITE’s proprietary palladium-based membrane reactor technology, which enables the simultaneous catalytic decomposition of ammonia and selective hydrogen separation within a single unit.
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This breakthrough technology offers several compelling advantages over conventional ammonia cracking processes:
The ammonia cracking system will serve as a demonstration plant, aiming to validate the commercial and operational readiness of H2SITE’s integrated membrane reactor approach at an industrially relevant scale, with the goal of advancing the decarbonization of hard-to-abate sectors.
“This project represents an important milestone for the development of our technology. It enables the next steps toward commercializing our units for industrial sectors, energy hubs (such as ports and large-scale distribution centers), and onboard maritime applications," said Andres Galnares, CEO of H2SITE.
As the hydrogen economy develops, efficient solutions for transporting low-carbon hydrogen are essential. Ammonia is a promising hydrogen carrier due to its high volumetric energy density and existing infrastructure, and more than 20 million tons of ammonia are transported by ship every year. Advances in ammonia cracking technology such as H2SITE’s integrated membrane reactor will be an enabler to making this pathway competitive, enabling large-scale, flexible hydrogen supply chains.
About H2SITE
H2SITE, founded in 2020, is a technology company specializing in the on-site production and separation of high-purity hydrogen. The company utilizes exclusive palladium-alloy membrane reactor technology to efficiently convert various feedstocks including ammonia, methanol, and syngas into hydrogen. Additionally, H2SITE enables the separation of hydrogen from low-concentration gaseous mixtures for applications such as salt caverns or geologic hydrogen. By decentralizing hydrogen production through innovative ammonia cracking and separation solutions, H2SITE addresses the challenges of cost-effective hydrogen transportation and storage, significantly reducing associated costs and emissions.
( www.h2site.com )
H2SITE Membrane Reactor Technology
The H2SITE Team
Ammonia Cracker using Membrane Reactor Technology
CAIRO (AP) — The interim deal reached by the United States and Iran to end their war will reopen the Strait of Hormuz and bring the two adversaries back to the negotiating table over Tehran’s nuclear program. It will also give Iran an immediate benefit, allowing it to sell its oil freely again, according to a text of the accord read by U.S. officials.
Besides the new oil revenue for Iran, the two sides are more or less back where they were 3½ months ago — before Israel and the U.S. on Feb. 28 launched their war on Iran, which has left thousands dead across the region, triggered a global energy crisis and shaken the American economy.
Iran and the U.S. will enter a 60-day period of negotiations, and hanging over them will be the question of whether U.S. President Donald Trump can wrest a better deal than the 2015 nuclear accord he scuttled eight years ago.
Here’s what to know based on the U.S. text, which hasn't been confirmed by Iran:
Once the deal is signed, expected Friday, the Strait of Hormuz will reopen and the U.S. will lift its blockade of Iranian ports, which should push gas prices down. Passage through the waterway will be toll-free for only 60 days, and the deal doesn't preclude fees in future, according to U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to read the draft language.
Iran’s closure of the strait, through which around a fifth of the world’s oil supplies must pass to reach markets, proved perhaps its strongest weapon. It drove up global fuel prices, made food and other basics like fertilizer more expensive, and helped push U.S. inflation to 4% ahead of this fall's midterm elections.
The deal immediately waives, but doesn't eliminate, sanctions that Trump imposed on Iran’s oil exports, allowing it once again sell its crude on the world market and restoring a revenue stream worth billions.
Last year, Iran earned an estimated $45 billion from oil sales. But it had only one major buyer, China, and had to ship its crude through a shadow fleet of tankers to elude sanctions, eating into its profits. Under the blockade since April, its exports have nearly ground to a halt.
With the waiver, Iran will likely be able to find more customers and sell its oil for higher market prices.
The draft agreement includes language on Iran’s highly enriched uranium, requiring it be downgraded on site at a “minimum,” according to the U.S. officials. But negotiations on the particulars of Tehran's nuclear program still lie ahead.
Trump withdrew from the previous nuclear deal in 2018, saying it gave a huge windfall to Iran. But the interim deal outlines even more lucrative incentives for Iran if it reaches a new agreement with the U.S. on its nuclear program.
One is the eventual lifting of all international sanctions, which would seem to go further than the 2015 accord. That agreement lifted sanctions related to Iran’s nuclear program but kept others in place over what the U.S. alleged were Tehran's support for terrorism and rights abuses.
The interim pact also promises a $300 billion fund for reconstruction of Iran’s war damage. One of the officials said Wednesday that the agreement doesn't require the U.S. to pay any money toward the fund but permits other countries, such as Gulf Arab nations, to do so.
To give a sense of the extraordinary scale of the fund, the World Bank estimates that Syria, after 13 years of destructive civil war, needs $215 billion for reconstruction; the Gaza Strip, largely flattened in two years of war between Israel and Hamas, needs $53 billion.
The deal also promises to unfreeze billions of dollars worth of Iranian assets held abroad during the negotiations under a procedure the two sides will work out, according to the text provided by U.S. officials.
The Trump administration said its war aims were to “obliterate” Iran's missile arsenal, “sever its support” for proxies in the region, “annihilate its navy” and ensure it never acquires a nuclear weapon.
The seven weeks of U.S.-Israeli bombardment are believed to have heavily damaged Iran’s missile arsenal and production facilities as well as other parts of its military. How heavily isn't known, though, and Iran continued to fire on Israel as recently as last week. Meanwhile, Iran’s ties with its militant proxies — Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen and Shiite militias in Iraq — appear strong as ever.
Neither the missile issue nor Iran’s support for its allies appears to be on the table in the upcoming negotiations. The interim deal only specifies that the talks will focus on Iran’s nuclear program.
The deal calls for an end to the war in Lebanon, where Israel has been fighting Hezbollah.
However, Israel and Hezbollah aren't parties to the agreement. Iran insists Israel must withdraw from the large swath of southern Lebanon it has occupied since March, but the interim deal doesn't explicitly require that and only affirms a commitment to ensuring Lebanon's “territorial integrity.”
Israel has vowed to keep its troops in the zone, while Hezbollah says it is committed to resisting Israel “until full withdrawal is achieved.” If fighting spirals, it could derail the U.S.-Iran deal unless the two countries can rein in their respective allies.
Israel was squeezed out of the negotiations with Iran, and Israelis from across the political spectrum have called the deal a disaster, directing their fury at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump, meanwhile, has grown more scathing in his displeasure with Netanyahu, even describing him as “crazy.” During the negotiations with Iran, Trump was furious over Israel’s strikes in Beirut, warning they could jeopardize an agreement.
In France on Tuesday, Trump said at the annual G7 summit that “without the U.S., there would be no Israel,” and added that Netanyahu “has to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon.”
Netanyahu is left in a precarious situation ahead of national elections later this year. His relationship with Trump may require downscaling a military campaign in Lebanon that is widely popular in Israel.
Meanwhile, Israel’s arch-nemesis, Iran, would emerge from the war seemingly bolder.
The Islamic Republic survived the most serious attempt ever by Israel and the United States to topple it, despite their thundering opening volleys of the war that killed Iran’s supreme leader and other top officials. And Iran demonstrated its ability to retaliate economically by shutting down the strait and striking U.S. Arab allies in the Gulf, giving Tehran confidence that Trump won't seek a return to war.
The 2015 agreement negotiated by the Obama administration severely limited Iran’s nuclear program for 15 years. During that period, Iran could only enrich uranium to a low level, 3.67%, which is far below the 90% needed for a weapon. It could only stockpile 300 kilograms of the material and had to sharply reduce its centrifuges carrying out enrichment. It was also put under stricter inspections by the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog agency.
One main criticism was the 15-year time limit, after which opponents said Iran would be able to quickly ramp up its ability to produce a bomb.
A key question now will be whether the U.S. can win stricter limits on Iran’s program for a longer term. The United States wants Iran to give up or dilute its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which Iran developed in retaliation after Trump pulled out of the 2015 accord.
Even if Iran agrees to that, it is almost certain to demand the right to rebuild its enrichment program at lower levels, for what it insists are peaceful purposes.
Associated Press reporters Michelle L. Price and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at the G7 summit, Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in Evian-les-Bains, France. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
People returning to their village following the announcement of an initial ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran, check a car at a destroyed market shop in Nabatiyeh town, southern Lebanon, Tuesday, June 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Tankers and cargo vessels are seen in the Gulf of Oman, along shipping routes linking the Strait of Hormuz and the Arabian Sea, Tuesday, June 16, 2026. (AP Photo)
A woman waves an Iranian flag during a pro-government campaign under a portrait of the slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People who return to their village following the announcement of an initial ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran, gather with journalists at a destroyed street in Beer al-Salassel, south Lebanon, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
In this photo released by the Pakistan Prime Minister Office, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif speaks on the U.S.'s conflict with Iran, during a assembly session in the parliament in Islamabad, Pakistan, Monday, June 15, 2026. (Pakistan Prime Minister Office via AP)
A woman waves an Iranian flag during a pro-government campaign as a portrait of the slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, is displayed at rear, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A woman walks past an anti-American mural on the wall of the former U.S. Embassy, now a museum, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
