A new clean tech company is making inroads in Seattle.
South Korean hydrogen startup Apgreen announced earlier this month it was opening an office at the K-Startup Center in the Met Park East building in Seattle's Denny Triangle neighborhood.
Apgreen co-founder and CEO Taeyoon Park said the Seattle area is appealing because of the availability of hydropower, calling it a hydrogen hotbed. She indicated the Denny Triangle office is likely just the start of the company's plans here.
The K-Startup Center is a coworking space that also offers support to startups. Apgreen doesn't have specific plans for how many people will work here to start and it's undetermined how much space the startup will occupy in the center.
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Park said the region's new status as a hydrogen hub was a major incentive for Apgreen. In July, the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association (PNWH2), a multistate nonprofit aimed at making hydrogen a viable fuel source, received Phase 1 status and up to $27.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs program. The multiyear program could bring $1 billion in federal funding to PNWH2 over time.
Apgreen, founded in 2022, is developing a reactor that converts hydrocarbons like methane into hydrogen and solid carbon materials. The company says its approach doesn't require water, making it ideal for regions with little water, as well as remote locations like animal farms.
According to the Apgreen website, Park has founded previous hydrogen startups. Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Ali T-Raissi has more than 40 years of experience in hydrogen technologies, Apgreen said in a release.
The K-Startup Center has been busy attracting new clean-energy startups to the region.
In May, Korean battery pack company CTNS said it was establishing a foothold here with a space at the K-Startup Center. CTNS Chief Strategy Officer Junmo Kim said at the time the company was looking to establish an American subsidiary and open a manufacturing center in the region. The company planned to find a manufacturing center or start building by the end of the year.
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