Exxon Mobil Research and Engineering Company
QuestAir entered into a five year joint development agreement with ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company (EMRE), effective October 2003, to evaluate specific projects and to develop, commercialize and market PSA products and processes for a range of refinery and petrochemical applications. The term of this agreement was extended to April 2010 in October 2006.
The agreement provides a framework for a broad collaboration and could lead to the development of PSA technology and products based on a common product platform for a number of different applications. In addition, EMRE contributes financial and technical resources towards the completion of this product development.
The first project undertaken under the terms of the joint development agreement is the assessment and planned development of a large capacity PSA product (the QuestAir™ H-6200) to recover hydrogen from a number of hydrogen containing streams in oil refineries. In May 2006, EMRE and QuestAir signed a marketing agreement which covers the marketing of the H-6200 hydrogen purifier to third party customers in the oil refining industry.
QuestAir and EMRE are also collaborating on the development of a compact on-board hydrogen generator for use in a range of transportation applications. Target markets for this product include potential early term fuel cell markets such as utility vehicles and auxiliary power units for heavy duty trucks and military vehicles.
Shell Hydrogen
In October 2002, QuestAir entered into an agreement with Shell Hydrogen, one of the companies of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group that is focused on global activities in commercializing hydrogen fuel and supporting fuel cell applications. Shell Hydrogen made an equity investment of $11 million in the Company as part of the transaction. The relationship is intended to accelerate the development of the Company's compact hydrogen PSA technology for use in producing hydrogen from natural gas feedstock. We believe that this relationship positions the Company to be a participant in the development of the hydrogen fuelling infrastructure that will support the future commercialization of fuel cell vehicles.
Hydro-Chem
In March 2006, QuestAir signed a manufacturing and licensing agreement with Hydro-Chem, a leading global supplier of industrial hydrogen plants in the capacity range up to 5,000 NCMH, having supplied over 140 plants around the world. Hydro-Chem specializes in the design, engineering and construction of modular hydrogen plants for clients in the food, steel, glass and petrochemical industries. This agreement significantly expands QuestAir’s access to the global hydrogen plant market in the up to 5,000 NCMH capacity range.
Other Supply and Distribution Relationships
QuestAir has non-exclusive distribution agreements for its first generation PSA systems with:
- Iwatani International, the leading supplier of hydrogen in Japan
- Technip KTI S.p.A, a process engineering contractor operating internationally in the refining and petrochemical industries
- Mitsubishi Kakoki Kaisha, a leading supplier of industrial hydrogen plants
In addition, QuestAir has supply agreements with HyRadix Inc., a leading developer of hydrogen generators for industrial and hydrogen fueling markets, and with Nuvera Fuel Cells, a leading developer of fuel cells for transportation applications and hydrogen fueling systems for supporting fuel cell powered industrial vehicles.
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