Office of the NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer Visits HydGene

HydGene Renewables recently welcomed representatives from the Office of the NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer to its Sydney facility, including NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte, for a tour of HydGene’s pilot systems and biocatalyst technology platform.

The visit provided an opportunity to showcase how HydGene is developing modular biological systems capable of converting waste biomass into low-cost hydrogen for producing sustainable fertiliser and fuel directly where they are needed.

For HydGene Head of Engineering Peter Meek, the value of seeing the technology in person is difficult to overstate.

“I’ve learnt that 1,000 pitch decks can’t do what one lab tour does for people’s belief in our company,” said Meek. “The abstract concept of biomass to chemicals becomes real in front of your eyes.”

Throughout the visit, the team discussed the broader challenge facing global chemical manufacturing — balancing decarbonisation, supply-chain resilience, and affordability — and how decentralised production models may help reshape the future of industrial systems.

The HydGene team also shared recent progress in scaling its proprietary immobilised biocatalyst platform, including continuous long-duration operation and the ability to process a wide range of biomass feedstocks.

“People stop asking whether it works,” Meek added. “They start asking where it goes next.”

The visit comes at a time of growing global interest in practical, scalable approaches to industrial decarbonisation — particularly technologies capable of reducing reliance on centralised fossil-based supply chains for hydrogen and essential chemicals.

HydGene acknowledged the ongoing support of the NSW Government and the Office of the Chief Scientist & Engineer in supporting deep-tech innovation and advanced manufacturing capability within New South Wales.