ECL: Green Hydrogen-Powered Data Centres
ECL, a startup specialising in sustainable digital infrastructure, has received three awards at the Global Sustainability Awards 2025 for its work in powering data centres with green hydrogen.
As the demand for artificial intelligence and cloud computing skyrockets, the environmental toll of traditional data centres has come under intense scrutiny.
ECL secured the Net Zero Award, the Project of the Year Award and the Startup Award in recognition of its innovative approach to energy consumption in the digital age.
Based in California, ECL provides a modular off-grid data-centre-as-a-service.
It constructs advanced 3D-printed data centre modules that run entirely on green hydrogen fuel cells.
This modularity allows for rapid deployment and scalability, meaning clients can expand their data capacity incrementally as their needs grow.
The use of advanced 3D printing in construction not only speeds up the building process but also allows for precise and resource-efficient fabrication of the complex structures required.
This system produces no emissions and generates the water needed for cooling equipment, creating a self-sufficient and environmentally neutral operation.
The solution is designed for deployment in any location, offering a scalable and genuinely off-grid data infrastructure for cloud providers and enterprise clients.
Green hydrogen power
ECL’s primary innovation is the development of the world's first off-grid AI data centre powered by hydrogen.
This approach addresses some of the most significant energy challenges facing the rapidly growing data centre industry.
Traditional data centres are a huge drain on public electricity grids, which are often powered by fossil fuels and can be prone to instability.
By operating entirely off-grid, ECL’s model eliminates this dependency, offering clients greater reliability and energy sovereignty.
Yuval Bachar, Founder and CEO of ECL, says: “Never before has hydrogen been harnessed for use as the primary power source for the data centre, and that, combined with the unmatched efficiency of our cooling system and our emissions-free operations, is unique in the world today."
By using hydrogen as the main power source, ECL has created a model that could allow digital operations to decarbonise at scale.
Sustainable data infrastructure
ECL's facility has zero operational emissions and does not depend on external water sources.
Many conventional data centres consume vast quantities of water for cooling, putting a strain on local resources, especially in arid regions.
Instead, ECL’s system cleverly repurposes the pure water created as a byproduct of its fuel-cell power generation for its cooling needs.
Yuval Bachar, Founder and CEO of ECL, says: “Never before has hydrogen been harnessed for use as the primary power source for the data centre and that, combined with the unmatched efficiency of our cooling system and our emissions-free operations, is unique in the world today."
This closed-loop system is engineered to manage high-density compute loads.
These high-density workloads, typical of AI and machine learning applications, generate extreme heat in concentrated areas, a challenge that conventional cooling systems struggle to manage efficiently.
The success of this model could influence suppliers within the sector to adopt more sustainable practices, creating a ripple effect throughout the digital supply chain.
A blueprint for net zero
The criteria for the Global Sustainability Awards centre on innovation impact and the potential to create a scalable blueprint for a sustainable future.
For the Net Zero Award, judges looked for clear progress towards eliminating carbon emissions and ECL’s zero-emission operational model was a standout.
The Project of the Year award required a project that showed excellence in execution and transformative potential, which was met by ECL's fully realised hydrogen-powered data centre.
The Startup Award celebrated a new company making a major disruptive impact on its industry.
ECL’s success across all three categories emphasises the comprehensive nature of its business model.
Securing recognition across these distinct areas highlights the well-rounded nature of ECL’s innovation, acknowledging not just the environmental benefits but also the project's flawless execution and its potential to disrupt the entire industry.
Other companies highly commended at the awards included Fincantieri & DP World in the Net Zero category and apetito Ltd & Link in the Project of the Year category.
A new standard for digital growth
The recognition from the Global Sustainability Awards serves as powerful validation for ECL's vision.
By proving that data-intensive operations can be decoupled from the public grid and run with zero emissions, ECL is not just building data centres; it is setting a new standard for sustainable digital growth.
This success is likely to accelerate investment in green hydrogen technologies and encourage a broader change within the tech industry towards genuinely sustainable infrastructure, paving the way for a cleaner, more resilient digital future.