Nernst raises €1.7M for on-site oxygen
Nernst Electric has raised €1.7M to pilot ceramic-membrane systems that produce high-purity oxygen directly where industrial users need it.
Industrial oxygen is often treated as a commodity, but transporting it to remote or distributed sites creates cost, storage and supply risks.
What happened
Irish startup Nernst Electric raised a €1.7M seed investment from Hatch Blue’s Blue Revolution Fund.
The company is developing equipment that uses ceramic membranes and additive manufacturing to separate high-purity oxygen directly from ambient air.
Its first target market is aquaculture, where fish farms may depend on liquid oxygen delivered from central production facilities. Nernst will use the funding to build and deploy its first pilot-scale system before moving into wider commercial trials.
Why it matters
Reliable oxygen supply is essential for fish health and farm productivity. Producing it on site could reduce transport costs, storage requirements and exposure to delivery disruption.
The technical challenge is proving that the system can operate efficiently and reliably in demanding environments. Maintenance, energy consumption and membrane durability will determine whether on-site generation is economically preferable to delivered oxygen.
The bigger picture
The same underlying technology could eventually serve other oxygen-intensive sectors, including mining, steel and wastewater treatment.
Nernst fits a broader climate-tech pattern: replacing centralised industrial supply chains with smaller, distributed systems located closer to demand. The opportunity is meaningful, but the company remains at the pilot stage and must demonstrate performance before the model can scale.