SOLUTION / PUBLIC SOURCE RECORD
SEID’s Project ColdSpark simplifies sustainable hydrogen production
- Published 21 February 2023; updated 21 September 2026; estimated reading time 3 minutes. Marked “Under development”; the quick information panel says a commercial-scale pilot was planned for 2024. Listed under Hydrogen / Conversion/technology and Energy.
- SEID’s EU-funded Project ColdSpark® is developing cold methane pyrolysis using non-thermal plasma. Electromagnetic nanopulses are intended to split methane from natural gas or biogas into hydrogen and solid carbon. The article says the process could make ultra-low-carbon hydrogen with lower capital cost than conventional methane pyrolysis, at about one-quarter of electrolysis’ energy cost; elsewhere it says one-seventh of electrolysis energy. These are project claims and estimates, not demonstrated commercial operating data in this page.
- The company says its process uses no large quantity of ultra-pure water, can run electrically at low temperature and pressure without rare-earth metals, and produces solid carbon rather than gaseous CO₂. The article suggests this carbon could substitute for toxic carbon black in products such as tyres and batteries. Small, distributed, containerised units near customers are proposed to avoid hydrogen transport costs, space and safety challenges.
- The page contrasts hydrogen’s clean use with emissions from production: it cites steam methane reforming as the dominant route and says one kilogram of hydrogen from that process releases nine kilograms of CO₂. It also describes limitations of electrolysis and conventional methane pyrolysis.
- Development status: the page explicitly calls ColdSpark under development and planned a Norwegian commercial-scale pilot for 2024. That date has passed, but the article gives no confirmation of pilot completion or commercial operation. Performance, cost, emissions and product-market claims remain prospective here. Project funding is attributed to Horizon Europe, grant agreement 101069931.
- Linked to SDGs 7 (Affordable and clean energy) and 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure).
- Contact: Terje Hauan, Chief Technology Officer, terje@seid.no. Company: SEID AS, Bedriftsveien 25, 4313 Sandnes, Norway; seid.no. A phone-number reveal control is present.