Hy24 is the world's first investment manager fully dedicated to scaling up the hydrogen economy

“I learned progressively of the immense potential for hydrogen to transform the world’s energy consumption patterns during 26 years at Air Liquide, where I developed its intense use in classic industries as well as in the most advanced ones, from Space to Mobility. I left to start FiveT Hydrogen in 2021 with the intention to mobilize my energy and industry knowledge into this huge challenge for our energy future. The Hy24 Joint Venture with Ardian is foundational to that goal. As former Chair of Hydrogen Europe and founding co-Secretary at the Hydrogen Council, the global CEO-led initiative for companies which share our vision, I have been at the centre of the rapidly evolving global hydrogen economy for the last decade.”

“During my 30 years in infrastructure investment at Ardian, I’ve put my education and previous experience to good use. I was trained in geological engineering and spent my early career in structured and acquisition finance at Crédit Lyonnais and Crédit Agricole. Through it all, I’ve learned not only how investments and projects work from a financial perspective, but also how they operate and can be improved from a practical viewpoint. I see in Hy24 the opportunity to build on the promise of the hydrogen economy through the development of genuinely meaningful investments which will deliver true economic and sound environmental advantage.”

“I’ve been at Ardian for 15 years, for the last 11 years with a lead role in developing our developments in the renewable energy space, leading to à 7.5GW platform. Before that, I was a strategy consultant with Roland Berger focusing on utilities and due diligence. At the head of the Energy Transition team of Ardian, I’ve realized hydrogen could and should work seamlessly with renewable electricity to help us through the climate challenge. I’ve sat on the board of half a dozen or so portfolio companies in the green energy and midstream sectors, where I’ve experienced the opportunities and tribulations at the front line. It will all be invaluable experience for my role at Hy24.”

“My 18 years’ work experience united innovative technologies and investment, leveraging my engineering background. My first investments in biogas and hydrogen technologies started from 2010, and I spent the past seven years in charge of hydrogen energy investments and asset management at Air Liquide. There and in roles at Lazard, UBS, and Barclays, I’ve closed more than 50 transactions that cover a spectrum from M&A to venture capital and infrastructure financing. Hy24 is the ideal place for me to feed my passion for innovative markets and exercise the skills I’ve gained.”

“I began my career as an academic focussed on law, innovation, and public finance. In 2009 I caught the hydrogen bug when I helped launch the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, an EU public-private partnership that funded most European hydrogen R&D. I concluded in 2016 that it was time to put hydrogen at the core of public policies and corporate strategies, then spent five years co-developing Hydrogen Europe, the influential European hydrogen industry association. Now that the major role of hydrogen is acknowledged, the logical next step is to bring private investors and create a new asset class. Hence, I co-founded FiveT Hydrogen. For me, it is the ideal place to participate at the intersection of hydrogen finance, regulation, and technology.”

Lynn Hochard is a seasoned professional in the financial sector, with a wealth of experience spanning over a decade in financial and investment management. Currently, she holds the position of Chief Financial Officer at Hy24, where she also serves as an HR Coordinator and is a member of the Comex. Prior to joining Hy24, she spent nearly ten years at Ardian, where she held several key positions, including Senior Finance Manager, Finance Manager in the Infrastructure team as well as Investment Manager Buyout. In those positions, Lynn gained valuable expertise in managing complex fund and investment structures, with a particular focus on the French, American and Luxembourg markets.

Nicole Vermeulen is Chief Industrial Officer at Hy24. After obtaining her engineering and business degrees, she has spent the majority of her nearly 20-year career in various parts of the energy sector, including wind, solar, and oil & gas. In the past decade she worked for Shell, in leading positions for large-scale (unconventional) projects from early-stage development until execution and operations, as well as DD for M&A deals and integration. In the last few years, she was part of the hydrogen team and led the supply chain function for the large green hydrogen projects. Nicole will leverage her industrial knowledge and experience to support the deployment of Hy24’s portfolio and lead the asset management, as well as investments for Hy24’s new initiative focused on hydrogen equipment and technologies.

“I have over twenty years of experience in investment and corporate finance in the energy sector spanning mergers and acquisitions, infrastructure, and venture capital types of investments. Before joining Hy24 as Managing Director – Head of the Clean Hydrogen Equipment Fund, I’ve spent 11 years with EDF Group, including as M&A Director and CFO of Holding Activities at EDF Renewables, and Head of EDF Pulse Ventures (Corporate Venture Capital activity of EDF). In those positions, I managed teams of investment professionals, who participated in structuring and leading numerous transactions in the utilities, energy, environment, clean technology, and digital sectors. I am delighted to join a company which is realizing its ambition to be a leading catalyst among the clean hydrogen ecosystem and a pure player at the forefront of the market.”

Mr. Jenhao HAN is the Managing Director Asia for Hy24 Partners responsible for overall business development targeting hydrogen opportunities in the region. Hy24 Partner manages the world’s first pure play hydrogen focused investment fund of Euro 1.5 billion which is supported by leading industrial companies and financial institutions. The ambition of Hy24 is to drive the realization of hydrogen’s global potential as the low carbon energy vector by supporting infrastructure projects with greatest positive impact on the environment and society. Hy24 is the frontrunner in the funding of sustainable hydrogen infrastructure projects around the world in order to drive the development of the hydrogen economy.

Prior to Hy24 Partners, Mr. Han was the Head of Asia for ARDIAN. He led the Asian business for 10 years and he was responsible for over $1bn of investments. Mr. Han advised various financial institutions on investment strategies related to alternative assets and he advised companies on strategic cross-border initiatives in Asia. Mr. Han was also the founding partner of KCA Capital Partners which is a cross border investment platform sponsored by China International Capital Corporation.

Mr. Han holds an MBA degree from INSEAD and undergraduate from Cornell University. He has extensive professional and personal experience in Asia, and is fluent in written and spoken English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese.

“I spent the beginning of my career as an investment professional within Ardian Infrastructure team in Paris and in London. During those years, I have been involved on a significant number of transactions in the energy and transport sectors. After a short but intense work experience in Sub-Saharan Africa, I relocated to Switzerland from where I have been focusing on enhancing value of Ardian Infrastructure renewable energy portfolio. That’s the way I have discovered the power of clean hydrogen and have then naturally decided to support the scale-up of its economy by joining Hy24 team.”

“I spent the majority of the past 14 years working in the mining and renewable energy sectors in private equity, investment banking, and corporate development roles. When I first learned about how hydrogen could serve as a critical piece of the broader clean energy transition, I was instantly captivated. I soon realized that not only could clean hydrogen help decarbonize areas such as the fertilizer and transportation sectors, but it could also serve as a solution to renewable energy’s intermittency, by storing electrons, and linking clean energy supply and demand centers, by serving as an energy carrier. I now lead Hy24’s investment opportunities in the Americas and am excited to be a part of a team that is investing in clean hydrogen to advance the energy transition.”

“All my 12 years professional experiences were in Private Equity: started with Antin Infrastructure Partners in Paris after graduation from HEC Paris and Ecole Polytechnique, then moved to Ardian Singapore in 2011 to invest in different asset classes, i.e. Fund of Funds, co-investment, direct investments, etc. across Asia Pacific region. Hydrogen is relatively new to me, but I am excited about how it could potentially contribute to the energy transition and environment. I look forward to applying the best practices from Europe and scaling up hydrogen eco-system in Asia through investments.”

“I’ve started new businesses linked to the energy transition during 8 years at Air Liquide, starting with LNG, then moving to Biogas and finally, Hydrogen. I’ve led M&A negotiation to invest in the largest hydrogen station network in California and led the development of a $150M hydrogen production and liquefaction complex for Hydrogen vehicles (FCEVs) on the US West Coast. I’m deeply convinced of the strategic role of Hydrogen in fighting climate change, acting both as the common denominator and the missing link between Industry, Transportation, and Renewable Electricity storage. I’ve joined FiveT Hydrogen at its creation in 2021 and I’m now excited to be part of the Hy24 Joint-Venture with Ardian, within which we will be supporting the development of a global hydrogen economy for the energy transition.”

“I’ve been at Ardian for 8 years, with significant experiences in 3 different teams: Fund Finance, Global Compliance and Infrastructure. Within the Infrastructure team I mainly worked on 2 assets: a large renewable platform and a transport asset. It was during my experience in the Infrastructure team that I was able to work on the structuring of Hy24 as an independent and regulated management company. With these experiences within the Ardian group, I will be able to bring my transversal knowledge to the Hy24 team. Before joining Ardian, I graduated from the INSEEC business school in Paris with a major in Corporate Finance and from a selective program from the Saint-Cyr Military School.”

Oihane Martinez Balagué brings 8+ years of experience in Investment Banking. She has worked in +30 buy and sell side M&A transactions and IPOs across several sectors for an aggregate value of +~$100M in France, Spain and internationally. Before starting at HY24, Oihane has previously worked for UBS, Société Générale and Rothschild & Co. Oihane holds a MSc in Business Administration and Finance from Deusto Business School in Bilbao, Spain.

“I started my career in the natural resources and infrastructure teams of Société Générale in New York and then Paris – providing project and structured financing as well as financial advisory. I executed brownfield and greenfield transactions across various sectors (energy, digital infrastructures, transports, social infrastructures, mining…) and geographies (Americas, Europe, APAC …).

I’ve joined Hy24 at its creation and I’m thrilled to participate to the scale-up of hydrogen eco-system. Catalyzing the required investments to break the egg-and-chicken issue of hydrogen infrastructure is key to achieve the decarbonation of our planet.”

“I am convinced that hydrogen, as a storable zero-emissions energy carrier, will play a central role in the decarbonization of transport and industries by leveraging existing infrastructures. As part of the investment team, my role at Hy24 entails identifying and executing on investment opportunities that translate this vision into reality. Before joining Hy24’s Zurich team, I spent four years as an investment professional in the Private Equity Co-investment team at AlpInvest Partners in Amsterdam and the Infrastructure Private Equity team of Swiss Life Asset Managers. I graduated from the Technical University of Munich with majors in Corporate Finance and Power Engineering.”

Chris has over 9 years of experience in Asia-Pacific private equity. Chris started his career in the private equity division of Hana Financial Investment in Korea. He was then Vice President at KCA Capital Partners, a cross border investment platform sponsored by China International Capital Corp. As part of Hy24 Asia team, Chris sources and executes investment opportunities that contribute to the development of the clean hydrogen value-chain.

Meriem has spent 5 years at Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, notably leading the clean hydrogen corporate finance practice since 2021. In this role, she helped to build the bank’s capabilities to advise and finance large scale low carbon hydrogen projects & refueling networks, hydrogen equipment manufacturers and hydrogen mobility companies. Meriem joins the team set up to lead Hy24’s new investment initiative dedicated to clean hydrogen equipment and technologies scale-up.

“Before joining Hy24 in 2021, I worked for 3 years for two infrastructure investment funds dedicated to low-carbon mobility and energy transition at Demeter Partners. This experience allowed me to take advantage of my dual Engineering and Management background as I was involved in various projects with innovative business models. Prior to this, I spent 3 years at ATR Aircraft, an aircraft manufacturer where I got the taste for large industrial projects involving complex products. I see in Hy24 the opportunity to use these experiences in investing on clean hydrogen, which is in my opinion, an essential brick of the energy transition and industry decarbonation.”

“Before joining Hy24, I worked for more than 3 years in M&A at Société Générale. As part of this experience, I advised corporates and funds on transactions across various geographies and diverse industries, with a focus on the infrastructure space. I notably had the opportunity to advise on the launch of the Clean H2 Infra Fund, which strengthened my interest for the hydrogen sector. As part of the Hy24 team, I am excited to contribute to the energy transition and to the clean hydrogen market scale up.”

“Before joining Hy24, I worked as an Investment Analyst at Georgian Pension Fund, where I was responsible for identifying and analyzing different investment opportunities to allocate pension assets. Overall, I have over 6 years of working experience in financial analysis and financial risk management across banking, consulting, and healthcare industries. Additionally, I am a Chevening scholar and hold a Master of Finance degree from Manchester Business School.
Being a part of Hy24 is challenging and very exciting to me, as I have an opportunity to contribute to the sustainable development of our surroundings.”

“I pursued my studies at Sciences Po in Public Policies and Economics as well as at HEC in finance. After several internships in the economic field and in the public sector, I developed an interest for infrastructures supporting the energy transition. Therefore, I joined Ardian Infrastructure as an intern before joining Hy24 as an Analyst.”

“Through my experience and education, I have developed a sharp interest in energy and technology. Since I graduated from a master’s degree in Corporate Finance from Audencia, I have been focused on investments in the energy transition. In my prior experiences notably with Ardian Infrastructure, I have had the opportunity to work on various investment opportunities from Wind and Solar PV farm to long-term energy storage and hydrogen production. Hy24 is an opportunity to keep focusing on the energy transition while enabling a new market to develop.”

“My background as a civil engineer, plus my 3-year experience in infrastructure development in Mexico, has allowed me to grasp the key technical and socioeconomic aspects of implementing new projects. Obtaining a master’s degree in Infrastructure Project Finance has given me new tools to objectively analyse opportunities in the energy transition market and take decisions to successfully invest in them. Joining Hy24, sets a new step on my career to put into practice all the gathered knowledge, now in the hydrogen ecosystem.”

A graduate from École des Ponts ParisTech and The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Guillaume joined Hy24 as an intern in the investment team before taking a full-time position in January 2023 as an Investment Analyst. His previous experience at the World Bank in the Transport practice and his desire to contribute to a greener future will help propel clean hydrogen to the next stage.

“After twelve years in business development at Ardian Investor Relations, I joined the Ardian Infrastructure team where I focus on sustainability and energy transition issues. I support portfolio companies in their fantastic work to maximize their positive contribution to society notably by focusing on climate change; their work proves that managing ESG risks and opportunities reduces the cost of capital and better aligns financial interests. Hy24 aim is to build real-life cases where sustainability is at the heart of value creation and financial returns. As Head of Investor Relations I want to demonstrate that a community of interest is ready to come together to finance the transition to a low-carbon economy.”

“I’ve spent 9 years within the Autorité des marches financiers on the supervision, authorisation processes and management of asset managers in most investment topics and types (AIFM and UCITS). I was more specifically in charge of all topics related to private equity. This was a great experience to acquire strong skills in compliance but also to understand the main challenges faced by the industry. Now, I want to put this knowledge and experience to ensure that Hy24 carry on its regulated investment activities in compliance with its regulatory obligation. Before joining the AMF, I started with Axa Investment Managers in the development of the compliance relations related to the set up and development of new funds. I graduated from the Institut Mines Telecom business school.”

“I have spent the last decade advising major investment funds as a French qualified lawyer on a wide range of transactions, including leveraged buyout, infrastructure, and growth deals. It has given me extensive experience in private equity with a particular focus on impact investment. I am delighted to join Hy24 as Deputy General Counsel to contribute to fundraising and structuring endeavors, as well as execution of large-scale clean hydrogen projects as I will actively engage in transactions and portfolio management. I am thrilled to be part of a company whose ambition is to scale up the hydrogen economy while creating sustainable returns for its investors.”

“I joined Ardian in 2006, creating the client servicing department within the Investor Relation department, allowing me to be “client oriented” minded. In late 2009, I joined the Valuation department, valuing Ardian investments across multiple expertise such as buyout, private debt, growth, venture, real estate and infrastructure. This position allows me to have a good valuation overview of different sectors and this will be very valuable when valuing hydrogen assets.”

“I joined Hy24 in the end of 2021. In this position I am coordinating communication and accompanying the deployment of Hy24 as an independent brand and company. Previously I worked at Air Liquide in the advanced businesses and technologies unit and then in the hydrogen team. I also worked as press officer in the music and culture fields, supporting several artists and projects. I navigate in these different worlds with passion and dedication. Today I am delighted to support an impact company as Hy24.”

More to come