Israeli Clean-tech Startups Win Big In Morocco

A hydrogen fuel cell vehicle hydrogenation unit is seen at Hangzhou's first demonstration station for comprehensive utilization of hydrogen energy in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China, May 23, 2023. Recently, Hangzhou's first green transportation comprehensive energy station with green hydrogen as demonstration, hydrogen, electricity, natural gas trinity, was put into use. This green transportation comprehensive energy station used to be an LNG emergency gas source station. Through reconstruction, it is transformed into a green and low-carbon transportation comprehensive energy demonstration station, which can not only hydrogenate hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, but also fast charge electric vehicles. At the same time, the demonstration station for comprehensive utilization of energy is reserved for filling compressed natural gas for oil-gas dual-fuel taxis. CFOTO/ISRAEL21C

Israeli startup QD-SOL of Ness Tziona won first prize of $500,000 in the Aviram Awards competition held in Morocco on May 16. 

QD-SOL is developing technology to produce green hydrogen from water using only solar energy.

QD-SOL VP-Bus Dev Arik Ganor, left, and CEO Gil Davidman flanking Ziv Aviram of the Aviram Foundation. Photo courtesy of Forbes

Green hydrogen is generated by renewable energy or by low-carbon power. It accounts less than 0.04% of total hydrogen production. Green maybe hard to decarbonize sectors which are hard to electrify.

It is produce by using renewable energy to power the electrosis of water.

The second-place prize of $100,000 went to another Israeli startup, Carbon Blue, which is developing a method to remove and permanently sequester excess carbon dioxide from seawater to counter ocean acidification and enhance oceans’ ability to absorb more atmospheric CO2.

“Leveraging Metal Nodes in Metal–Organic Frameworks for Advanced Anodic Hydrazine Oxidation Assisted Seawater Splitting,” said Damien Debecker in a tweet, a chemistry professor at UCLovain in Belgium.

Also, among the five finalists was Israeli company Avertto, which is working to commercialize an easy-to-use stroke alert device for high-risk populations.

A new, hydrogen-powered, refuse vehicle (l) and other zero-emission vehicles stand at the depot during a press event. Stadtreinigung Hamburg (SRH) presented a new hydrogen-powered garbage truck on Thursday and handed over the vehicle to the residual waste column 3 of Stadtreinigung. CHRISTIAN CHARISIUS/ISRAEL21C

Sponsored by the Aviram Foundation and Forbes, the Aviram Awards recognize young, promising entrepreneurs in the MENA region working to improve the lives of the world population through business, innovation and technology.

The competition garnered 780 registrants from Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Jordan in the fields of health, environment, sustainability, education, transportation and more.

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Laage: The solar park of the company Apex. The electricity produced is used for the production of green hydrogen. Apex is part of the hydrogen cluster Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The major energy companies active in Germany do not expect to be self-sufficient in sustainably produced hydrogen in this country in the future. BERND WUSTNECK/ISRAEL21C

Former US President Bill Clinton, participating on behalf of the Clinton Foundation, said, “In an era when most people focus on the differences between us and not on the commonality, the Aviram Awards competition finds the common denominator between entrepreneurs and their motivation to action. The business sector must constantly ask if what it is doing is good for society, and continue to try to create an impact in a variety of areas, such as climate and education.”

Produced in association with ISRAEL21c