Novacium, Axel’One and AD-VENTA Secure €1 Million in RAPID Funding from the DGA and AID for the METAGENE™ Green Hydrogen Project

HPQ’s partner secures €1 million public funding for green hydrogen project with 30-month timeline.

What the company is saying

HPQ Silicon announces that its strategic partner, Novacium SAS, is leading the METAGENE™ consortium, which has secured nearly €1 million in public funding under France’s RAPID program to develop a green hydrogen production station. The company emphasizes the project’s selection at the maximum 80% subsidy rate, presenting this as a vote of confidence in the technology’s dual-use civilian and military potential. The announcement highlights METAGENE™’s patented process for producing green hydrogen without electricity, using a solid aluminum-silicon fuel, and details its safety, transport, and energy-density advantages. HPQ stresses its 36.8% equity stake in Novacium and exclusive commercialization rights for North America, positioning itself as a beneficiary of the project’s success. The tone is confident, with executive quotes from Dr. Jed Kraiem (Novacium COO) and Jean-Luc Mussot (AD-VENTA CEO) underlining the consortium’s expertise and the project’s fit for decentralized, high-pressure hydrogen production. The release also references large addressable markets, citing a US$500 billion global green hydrogen market by 2030 and €25 billion in mobility, to frame the project’s commercial relevance.

What the data suggests

The METAGENE™ project has a total budget of €1.2 million, with public funding covering nearly €1 million, representing an 80% subsidy—the program’s maximum. The project began September 1, 2026, and will run for 30 months, targeting advancement from Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 3 to TRL 5–6, which is still pre-commercial. The first funding payment was made in summer 2026, and the project is now underway. METAGENE™’s process claims an energy density of about 1.25 m³ of hydrogen per kilogram of fuel, with raw material costs of €20–30 per kilogram of hydrogen produced, compared to current hydrogen transport and storage costs that often exceed €50/kg. The hydrogen dispensing station, in partnership with AD-VENTA, aims for up to 20 kg of hydrogen output per day. HPQ Silicon’s 36.8% stake in Novacium and exclusive North American commercialization rights are confirmed. The announcement references large market projections—US$500 billion globally, €25 billion for mobility, and €5–10 billion for defense—but these are industry-wide and not linked to any current revenue or contracts. No technical validation at TRL 5–6 or commercial agreements are disclosed; all economic and technical advantages remain theoretical at this stage.

Analysis

The announcement is upbeat, highlighting a major public funding award and the launch of the METAGENE™ green hydrogen project. The realized facts—funding secured, project start, consortium formation, and HPQ's equity stake—are clearly disclosed and credible. However, the majority of the key claims are forward-looking: the project aims to advance from TRL 3 to TRL 5–6 over 30 months, and all commercial, technical, and market benefits are projected rather than realized. The release references large addressable markets and economic advantages, but these are hypothetical and not yet demonstrated by operational results or third-party validation. The €1.2 million project budget is significant for an R&D initiative, with nearly €1 million in public funding, but there is no immediate earnings or commercial impact. The tone is moderately hyped by emphasizing market size and potential applications, while the actual milestone is the start of a multi-year development project.

Risk flags

• ●Execution risk is high: the METAGENE™ project is at TRL 3, meaning the technology is still in early development and must advance through multiple stages before commercial viability. Many R&D projects at this stage do not reach market.
• ●Commercialization risk is material: while HPQ holds exclusive rights for North America, there are no disclosed offtake agreements, pilot customers, or commercial partners, so revenue is not assured even if technical milestones are met.
• ●Technical validation risk remains: claims about energy density, safety, and cost advantages are not yet supported by third-party validation or operational data at scale. The transition from laboratory to operational demonstrator can reveal unforeseen challenges.
• ●Funding risk is partially mitigated by the €1 million public subsidy, but the total project budget is modest for hydrogen infrastructure, and further capital may be needed for scale-up or commercialization.
• ●Market risk is present: the announcement cites large addressable markets, but actual adoption will depend on regulatory acceptance, customer willingness, and competition from established hydrogen production and distribution methods.

Bottom line

HPQ Silicon’s announcement signals real progress in securing nearly €1 million in public funding for the METAGENE™ green hydrogen project, with the first payment already received and a 30-month development window now underway. The project’s technical and economic claims—such as producing hydrogen without electricity, using inert solid fuel, and targeting €20–30/kg raw material costs—are promising but remain unproven at commercial scale. HPQ’s 36.8% stake in Novacium and exclusive North American rights give it a clear lever if the technology succeeds, but all market and revenue projections are industry-wide and not yet tied to HPQ’s own pipeline. The main value for investors is the de-risking of early-stage R&D through public funding and the formal launch of a multi-year development effort. The most important next steps will be technical validation at TRL 5–6 and evidence of commercial traction, such as pilot deployments or customer agreements. Until then, the project is a high-potential but high-risk bet on future hydrogen markets.

Announcement summary

(TSXV:HPQ, OTCQB:HPQFF) HPQ Silicon Inc. announced that its strategic partner, NOVACIUM SAS, is leading the METAGENE™ project consortium, which includes Axel’One and AD-VENTA, and has been awarded funding by the AID and DGA under the RAPID program. The funding agreement for the METAGENE™ project was finalized in June 2026, with the first payment made in summer 2026, and could not be disclosed until now due to confidentiality. The METAGENE™ project aims to develop and validate a self-contained, high-pressure green hydrogen production station, advancing the technology from TRL 3 to TRL 5–6. The project began on September 1, 2026, has a 30-month duration, and a total budget of €1.2 million, subsidized at the program's maximum rate of 80%, representing nearly €1 million in public funding. METAGENE™ is a patented process for producing green hydrogen without electricity, using a solid metallic fuel based on aluminum and silicon, which releases hydrogen upon contact with water and an activator, producing no greenhouse gases and only an inert solid by-product. The fuel is inert in bulk form and not classified as hazardous, simplifying transport and storage, and has an energy density of about 1.25 m³ of hydrogen per kilogram of fuel. Previous industrial partnerships include a memorandum of understanding with GLD Alloys in April 2025 for low-carbon aluminum supply, and an industrial cooperation agreement with AD-VENTA in December 2025 for integrating the METAGENE™ reactor into a dispensing station capable of delivering up to 20 kg of hydrogen per day. Novacium leads the consortium, develops the fuel and reactor, and manages the project; AD-VENTA adapts its compression and dispensing station; Axel’One provides gas analysis, characterization, and expertise in reactors and hydrogen purification. Dr. Jed Kraiem, co-founder and COO of Novacium, and Jean-Luc Mussot, President and CEO of AD-VENTA, commented on the recognition and practical potential of the project. The global green hydrogen market could reach approximately US$500 billion by 2030, with the mobility segment estimated at €25 billion and autonomous energy systems for defense applications at €5 billion to €10 billion. METAGENE™ aims to offer economic advantages by producing hydrogen on-site without electricity or major infrastructure, avoiding transport and storage costs that can exceed €50/kg, and using raw materials costing approximately €20 to €30 per kilogram of hydrogen produced. HPQ Silicon holds a strategic 36.8% interest in Novacium and exclusive commercialization rights to these technologies in North America. HPQ and Novacium are also developing next-generation silicon-based anode materials (GEN3 and GEN4) for batteries and pursuing commercialization of ENDURA+ lithium-ion cells.

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