Hydrogen Utopia International (LSE:HUI) said its project came back likely eligible against most key criteria in a voluntary indicative eligibility check under the UK Department for Transport's Low Carbon Fuels Fund (LCFF).
The London-listed company converts non-recyclable waste plastic into hydrogen, clean fuels and advanced materials, with a focus on jet fuel and Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
The check assessed fuel pathway, projected greenhouse gas performance, technology readiness, feedstock, plant location and lead applicant status.
The LCFF launched in June with up to £93 million available in its current window, part of a wider £219 million low-carbon fuels package that builds on £198 million already committed since 2022 through the Department's Advanced Fuels Fund.
The first funding window runs to 31 March 2028, prioritising first-of-a-kind commercial-scale projects nearing Final Investment Decision alongside earlier-stage demonstration projects.
A handful of items still need addressing before a full application, including acceptance of Grant Funding Agreement terms, confirmation of the project timeline, and evidence that funding could not otherwise be secured on commercial terms.
The company does not expect these to block submission.
Chief executive Aleksandra Binkowska said the outcome validates HUI's position against rival SAF pathways such as power-to-liquid, alcohol-to-jet and HEFA, which depend on feedstocks she described as "limited in supply and getting more expensive."
"We're on the other side of that equation: the current waste market pays end users to take unrecyclable plastics off people's hands," she said.
HUI will update the market as its application progresses.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
HUI's waste-plastic-to-fuel project has cleared an early screening gate for the UK's £93 million Low Carbon Fuels Fund, with the company likely eligible against most key criteria and only minor items to address before full application. This validates the commercial pathway for the large UK SAF facility with capex of about £800 million that could produce about 600,000 barrels of SAF per year, and positions HUI to compete for grant funding in a market where its feedstock advantage—waste plastic that currently pays end users to remove it—contrasts with rival SAF pathways dependent on scarcer, costlier inputs.
The indicative eligibility outcome de-risks a material funding pathway for HUI's flagship project and signals regulatory acceptance of its waste-plastic-to-SAF technology, but the company remains pre-revenue and early-stage; full grant award is not assured, and capex of £800 million will require additional financing beyond any LCFF award.
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