Hydrogen Utopia Partners with io Consulting to Advance Waste Plastic-to-Hydrogen and SAF Projects
Hydrogen Utopia International PLC has entered into a Master Services Agreement with London-based io consulting (energy) UK LLP to support the engineering, development and commercialisation of its waste plastic-to-hydrogen and waste plastic-to-Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) projects.
The agreement brings specialist engineering and project-development expertise to HUI as the company works to advance a growing pipeline of projects focused on converting non-recyclable waste plastics into hydrogen and advanced fuels.
Under the agreement, io consulting will provide engineering and advisory services covering the progression of projects from initial feasibility through increasingly detailed project definition. The objective is to establish the technical, commercial and financial foundations required to support investment decisions and ultimately project delivery.
io consulting operates across the energy, chemicals, resources and decarbonisation sectors and is a strategic joint venture between McDermott and Baker Hughes. Its multidisciplinary team includes consultants, engineers and project management professionals experienced in complex industrial and energy developments.
A particular focus of the engagement will be HUI’s UK SAF opportunity. io will assist in evaluating the technical configuration, commercial proposition and project-development requirements while also assessing potential funding and financing routes.
The partnership follows HUI’s announcement on August 17, 2026 that it had secured a UK licence from InEnTec Inc. for its proprietary Plasma Enhanced Melter (PEM®) gasification technology. The licence provides HUI with the ability to pursue the production of SAF from non-recyclable waste plastics in the UK.
The technology could provide a pathway for converting difficult-to-recycle plastic waste into higher-value products while producing hydrogen and advanced fuels. For HUI, the combination of waste conversion and hydrogen production forms part of its broader strategy to develop alternatives to conventional fossil-derived fuels and address waste-management challenges.
The UK SAF opportunity is also developing against a supportive policy backdrop. The UK Government has identified Sustainable Aviation Fuel as strategically important to the decarbonisation of aviation, while the Department for Transport’s SAF Mandate requires fuel suppliers to incorporate increasing quantities of SAF into the aviation fuel mix.
In June 2026, the Department for Transport announced a £219 million Low Carbon Fuels Fund, including £93 million expected to be made available over two years to support the development and commercialisation of UK SAF production capacity.
HUI intends to evaluate potential funding opportunities under these programmes as its UK SAF project advances. io will support the company in assessing relevant funding mechanisms and in engaging with potential partners, stakeholders and government-backed programmes.
The services agreement also gives HUI access to project-development capabilities as it moves its broader advanced-fuels pipeline forward. Rather than focusing solely on technology deployment, the engagement is intended to bring engineering, economics, financing and project execution considerations together at an early stage.
“ We are very pleased to be working with io consulting. Their experience as project architects across complex energy developments will be valuable as we advance our UK SAF opportunity and wider advanced fuels portfolio,” said Duncan Snelling, Chief Technical Officer of HUI.
Imran Esmail, CEO of io consulting, said the company would support HUI in developing the technical definition, commercial case, funding strategy and delivery pathway for its UK SAF opportunity and wider advanced-fuels portfolio.
The agreement represents another development step for HUI as it seeks to move its waste-plastic conversion technology from licensing and project development toward potential commercial deployment, with hydrogen production and SAF forming key components of its proposed UK advanced-fuels strategy.
