Hysata Wins WCSA2025 ACWA Innovation Award — Jury Announces Next Global Ceremonies in Morocco & Germany and WCSA2026 Launching Ceremony in China

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"Global Scale-Up Opportunity Confirmed at ACWA Innovation Days 2026 in Riyadh"

Hysata has been named the recipient of the WCSA2025 ACWA Innovation Award during the Awards Ceremony held on 27 January 2026 as part of ACWA Innovation Days 2026 in Riyadh.

Founded by the CleanTech Business Club (CBC) and powered by ACWA, the WCSA2025 ACWA Innovation Award recognises disruptive, deployable technologies capable of materially advancing industry standards through innovation, scalability, and measurable real-world impact.

The 2025 edition attracted 48 submissions from 25 countries across six continents, reflecting exceptional global diversity across Clean Hydrogen, Renewable Energy, Clean Water, Energy Storage, AI & Digitalisation, and cross-sector enabling solutions.

This year’s winner, Hysata, was recognised for its high-efficiency capillary-fed electrolyser technology — a breakthrough system engineered to significantly reduce the cost, energy intensity, and system complexity of green hydrogen production at scale.

Prof. Eicke R. Weber, Honorary Chair of the WCSA Jury; Professor Emeritus, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley; Former Director, Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), stated: “The evaluation process was extremely challenging due to the outstanding quality of submissions. The true value of this Award lies not only in recognition, but in bringing innovation to the market. I look forward to meeting further WCSA2025 Awardees during our upcoming ceremonies in Morocco and Germany.”

Watch ACWA Innovation Days 2026 & WCSA2025 Ceremony Snapshot — #TogetherWeAreStronger in Action

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ASTJoGv7Mw

Why Hysata Won

Hysata’s capillary-fed electrolysis system achieves 95% system efficiency (41.5 kWh/kg H₂) — significantly outperforming conventional electrolysers, which typically waste 25–30% of input electricity as heat.

Instead of incremental optimisation, Hysata redesigned the electrolyser from the inside out.

As explained by Daniel Tas Sandermann, Chief Commercial Officer of Hysata, during the “Green Hydrogen Ecosystem: From Innovation to Impact” panel: “Green hydrogen is fundamentally an OPEX game. Electricity is the dominant cost driver. Incremental efficiency gains or simply scaling up legacy technologies will not unlock the industry. The breakthrough must come from eliminating inefficiencies at the core.”

With its architecture, a 4 MW Hysata system can produce the same hydrogen output as a conventional 5 MW system, reducing balance-of-plant complexity, cooling requirements, materials usage, and installation cost — materially improving project economics and bankability.

Watch the full CBC Leadership TV interview with Daniel Tas Sandermann

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRGn-Aq4EgU

From Recognition to Global Scale

The significance of this award goes beyond recognition. The WCSA2025 ACWA Innovation Award is designed as a scale-up catalyst.

ACWA is currently developing some of the world’s largest green hydrogen and renewable projects, including the flagship NEOM Green Hydrogen Project in Saudi Arabia, representing one of the most ambitious green hydrogen developments globally.

Hysata has already signed a major agreement with ACWA to deliver and install its ultra-efficient electrolysers in Saudi Arabia, accelerating commercial deployment in the region.

In parallel, Hysata secured a USD 111 million Series B round in 2024 to scale manufacturing and is preparing commercial production in Australia.

The company’s objective: achieve green hydrogen at ~USD 2/kg, making it competitive with fossil fuels.

A Global Company from Day One

Although headquartered in Australia, Hysata has been international from inception.

Scaling green hydrogen will require collaboration across technology providers, customers, policymakers, financiers and industrial players.

The award reinforces that WCSA is not simply about celebration — but about accelerating deployment across ecosystems.

Thomas Altmann, Executive Vice President – Innovation & New Technology at ACWA and Co-Chair of the WCSA, commented:

“Hysata represents exactly what this Award is designed to identify — a breakthrough that is not only innovative, but deployable at scale. Efficiency is critical for unlocking green hydrogen economics. We are proud that this recognition supports technologies capable of accelerating real-world implementation.”

Watch CBC Leadership TV Talk with Thomas Altmann

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2Cz8Ss3jPQ

Riyad's Special Finalist Recognition – Glencal Technology (Japan)

During the Riyadh ceremony, CBC and ACWA also awarded a Finalist Diploma to Glencal Technology Co., Ltd. for its zero-OPEX desalination and mineral recovery technology.

Masahito Nakaishi, President and Representative Director at Glencal Technology Co., Ltd., who travelled especially from Japan to Riyadh, stated: “It is an honour to be recognised among such global innovators. Being in Riyadh and engaging with ACWA and CBC leaders who share the same passion for scalable solutions gives us strong confidence in future collaboration.

WCSA is not a one-shot event — it is the beginning of long-term partnership and collaboration to build jointly a better planet.”

Watch CBC TV Talk with Masahito

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-xy1qkRZtc

What’s Next – WCSA2025 Continues

Two additional WCSA2025 ceremonies will take place in 2026:

WCSA2025 Morocco Ceremony – May 2026

Held during the 8th CBC Annual Leadership Forum – “Beyond the Midpoint of the CleanTech Decade: From Vision to Intelligent Delivery at Scale”, featuring the Grand Opening of the Joint Center of Excellence in Clean Hydrogen at École Hassania des Travaux Publics (EHTP), Casablanca.

WCSA2025 Germany Ceremony – June 2026

Held during the 1st World CleanTech StartUPs Summit, colocated with the International Brokerage Event of the N4SFS – Investment Network for Sustainability-Focused Startups.

The above ceremonies will feature:

WCSA2025 Special Distinctions by CBC
WCSA2025 Visionary Founder Award (Dr. Charlie Gay Award)
WCSA2025 Visionary Investor Award (Paddy Padmanathan Award)
WCSA2025 Visionary Accelerator Award (Prof. Eicke R. Weber Award)
Finalist Diploma presentations for those unable to attend the Riyadh ceremony

WCSA2026 Launch

The next edition — WCSA2026 ACWA Innovation Award — will be officially launched during ACWA Innovation Days China in Shanghai in October 2026, marking another milestone in CBC–ACWA–SNEC collaboration.

Tomasz Slusarz, Founder & Vision Streamliner at the CleanTech Business Club; Initiator of WCSA, concluded: “This Award is about delivery at scale. We congratulate Hysata and all finalists who demonstrated that innovation is alive across six continents. Our collaboration with ACWA continues to prove that #TogetherWeAreStronger is not a slogan — it is an execution model. We now look forward to welcoming all WCSA2025 Awardees to Morocco in May and Germany in June, and to launching WCSA2026 at ACWA Innovation Days China in Shanghai this October.”

WCSA2025 ACWA Power Innovation Award – Official Finalists

1. Clean Hydrogen & Derivatives Category:

Hysata (Australia) for its high-efficiency capillary-fed electrolysis technology
H2Pro (Israel) for its decoupled water electrolysis technology

2. Renewable Energy & Power Generation Category:

DynoRotor Inc. (Canada) for its low-cost power generation from slow renewable resources
USMBA / Green Energy Park (Morocco) for its integrated renewable energy and power systems

3. Energy Storage & Flexibility Category:

CellCircle UG (Germany) for its direct recycling for a sustainable battery value chain
GMZ Enerji (Türkiye) for its advanced energy storage and flexibility technologies

4. Clean Water & Water–Energy Nexus Category:

Nines Photovoltaics (Ireland) for its non-plasma atmospheric dry etching (ADE™) significantly reducing ultrapure water, chemical, and energy intensity
Glencal Technology Co., Ltd. (Japan) for its zero-OPEX desalination and mineral recovery technology

5. Digitalisation, AI & Smart Infrastructure Category:

SonneNext Energy GmbH (Germany) for its AI-driven energy management solutions
Vectar Energy (Nigeria) for its digital MRV platform enabling transparent clean energy projects

6. Cross-Sector & Enabling Technologies Category:

TMEVnet (South Korea) for its high-efficiency thermal management and cooling platform
HVO SUISSE SA (Switzerland) for its continuous pyrolysis converting non-recyclable plastic waste into biofuels

WCSA2025 Special Distinctions by the CleanTech Business Club

In addition to the ACWA Power Innovation Award, the CleanTech Business Club is pleased to introduce the recipients of the WCSA2025 Special Distinctions by CBC, recognising outstanding ecosystem, sectoral, and regional leadership aligned with CBC Hubs:

WCSA2025 Special Distinction by CBC Morocco Hub – USMBA / Green Energy Park (Morocco) for their leadership in advancing Morocco’s CleanTech ecosystem through integrated renewable energy systems, research, education, and regional collaboration.
WCSA2025 Special Distinction by CBC AI & Digitalisation Hub – NeuralLake (Brazil) for their autonomous Edge AI infrastructure enabling intelligent, resilient, and scalable digital solutions for CleanTech and industrial operations.
WCSA2025 Special Distinction by CBC Maritime Hub – SeaTrain Technology (USA) for their SeaTrain™ Autonomous Subsea Logistics Glider System, an innovative logistics solution supporting decarbonisation, efficiency, and resilience in maritime and port operations.

About the Awards:

Created in 2023, the World CleanTech StartUPs Awards (WCSA), founded by the CleanTech Business Club (CBC) and powered by ACWA Power, are a prestigious annual global competition recognising the most innovative and disruptive startups in CleanTech, Clean Hydrogen, and Clean Water, as well as the visionary founders, investors, and high-impact accelerators enabling their success.

The WCSA aim to inspire innovation and accelerate growth across the CleanTech ecosystem by providing startups with a global platform to showcase their breakthrough technologies and scalable solutions. Beyond celebrating technological excellence, the Awards support the global transition towards sustainability by recognising the leaders and organisations driving meaningful impact across energy, water, and digital transformation.

The Awards are supported by a growing ecosystem of strategic partners and leading global organisations, contributing to the advancement of innovation, deployment, and cross-sector collaboration throughout the CleanTech decade, including: