By Jun Sato / Yomiuri Shimbun Senior Writer

Tokyo Gas Co. and Kyoto-based Screen Holdings Co. have begun accepting commercial orders for their new jointly developed line of electrolyte membranes, a core component of water electrolysis equipment used to produce hydrogen. Screen will manufacture the products, while Tokyo Gas will handle sales.

The companies announced Tuesday that they have started taking orders for a critical component called the "water electrolysis CCM" (catalyst-coated membrane), a thin membrane coated with a catalyst. It will be sold under the brand name "Pexem."

Joint development of the membrane, combining Tokyo Gas' catalyst technology with Screen's coating application abilities -- cultivated through display manufacturing -- began in May 2021. The companies worked to reduce costs by decreasing the volume of rare metals in the catalyst and optimizing the efficiency of the process of applying the catalyst to the membrane.

In February 2025, Screen opened a new factory in Hikone, Shiga Prefecture, which can steadily produce electrolyte membranes with an electrode area of up to 5,000 square centimeters. Current production capacity is equivalent to 2 million kilowatts per year, but the company plans to expand the capacity to as much as 6 million kilowatts depending on future demand growth.

Demand for green hydrogen, which combines water electrolysis equipment and renewable energy, is expected to grow as part of efforts to decarbonize society. "By promoting the Pexem business, we aim to lower the cost of green hydrogen thereby contributing to the (Japanese) government's goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050," Tokyo Gas said in a statement.

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This article is from The Yomiuri Shimbun. Neither Dow Jones Newswires, MarketWatch, Barron's nor The Wall Street Journal were involved in the creation of this content.

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December 11, 2025 04:54 ET (09:54 GMT)

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