The new Japanese shareholders are set to bring expertise in engineering, construction, equipment and finance to the spinout.

Ebara Corporation, Obayashi Corporation, Tokyo Century Corporation, the Development Bank of Japan, Mizuho Bank and Mitsubishi Kakoki Kaisha aim to move JSE from demonstration to commercial-scale operations.

However, the Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) spinout did not disclose the size of the stakes or the amount of capital each new investor will contribute.

“JSE is bringing together technologies for the production, transportation, storage, and supply of liquefied hydrogen,” JSE said in an online statement.

Founded in 2021, JSE is leading Japan’s first commercial-scale liquefied hydrogen supply chain and serves as a core player in NEDO’s Green Innovation Fund project, the “Commercial Demonstration of a Liquefied Hydrogen Supply Chain.”

The company aims to complete its commercial demonstration by 2030, centred on the Kawasaki liquid hydrogen terminal in Ōgishima, Japan’s “first” large-scale liquefied hydrogen import hub, to prove the full value chain from overseas production to domestic supply and lay the groundwork for a national hydrogen network.

The demonstration is also linked to the Suiso Frontier, the world’s first liquefied hydrogen carrier developed by KHI, which made its maiden voyage from Australia to Japan in 2022.

Japan’s largest oil and gas producer Inpex withdrew from JSE last year as part of a strategic refocus of its hydrogen portfolio. Liquefied hydrogen demands heavy upfront investment and long-term demand certainty.