Processing Your Payment

Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.

March 26, 2024

East Hartford fuel cell company confirms layoffs; announces progress in developing new product

HBJ PHOTO | STEVE LASCHEVER HyAxiom Director of Manufacturing James Skor speaks during a tour of the company’s South Windsor facility.
By Andrew Larson

East Hartford-based fuel cell company HyAxiom Inc. confirmed a workforce reduction, but wouldn’t say how many workers were affected.

HyAxiom, owned by the South Korean company Doosan Fuel Cell Co., said Tuesday it announced a reduction in hourly and salaried positions on March 21. 

“This reduction was driven by the adverse global economic situation coupled with impacts to the industry,” said Jeff Hyungrak Chung, CEO of HyAxiom. “Production at the South Windsor manufacturing facility will continue without interruption in all areas.”

Chung said affected employees would be eligible for a severance package and resources for career transition. 

“We value the contributions of all HyAxiom employees and deeply regret the need for this action,” he said. 

HyAxiom has had a turbulent few years.

In February 2023, HyAxiom laid off about 19% of its workforce, 57 employees, driven by an “adverse global economic situation coupled with impacts to the industry,” Chung said at the time.

In November 2023, HyAxiom announced an infusion of $150 million in private investment from three Korean investment firms to develop electrolyzer technology that generates hydrogen by breaking up water molecules.

On Monday, HyAxiom and Doosan announced their marine solid oxide fuel cell call stack (SOFC), which is under development, had passed a critical environmental test 

"Due to its lower operating temperature compared to other solutions in the marketplace, our SOFC offers a longer life span and is more efficient compared to existing internal combustion engines," Chung said. "The environmental test results prove our SOFC is a viable solution for the maritime industry.”

Sign up for Enews

Most Recent

Most Recent

0 Comments

Order a PDF