British gasoline station company EG Group has fully impaired a US$33m investment into struggling Scottish hydrogen truck maker HVS, which has recently warned it is on the brink of insolvency. The Issa brothers-owned EG Group held a 31% stake in HVS, which now warns it is at risk of “winding up in four weeks”. 

EG has been a backer of HVS for several years, first making a £5m (US$6.46m) equity investment in 2021, then subsequently extending a £25m convertible loan in 2022. At the time, EG stated it was interested in the “potential for hydrogen to power light and heavy-duty vehicles” and considered its “strategic investment” into HVS an opportunity to garner “unique insight into how that space is developing”. 

The last few months have been replete with stories of hydrogen truck makers filing for Chapter 11 or being liquidated; among them Nikolai, Proterra, Renault’s Hyvia, and Hyzon. Newly-appointed HVS Chief Executive Abdul Waheed has characterised his company’ current financial turmoil as “a stark consequence of financial turmoil caused by previous leadership who ignored a critical warning from Barclays’ Chief Hydrogen Investment Expert, Otto van Reijendam.”

HVS is attempting to pivot from manufacturing trucks to licensing out its technology

After several years trying to manufacture and sell its own hydrogen trucks—“a misjudgment of former leadership” that has “proven financially untenable and unsustainable”—the company is now attempting to pivot to a licensing model. However, to do so, it needs new investments on the order of £700,000 to fend off impending legal action. 

HVS’ Chief Scientific Officer David Telford sent an open letter to potential investors—primarily Barclays Climate Ventures—on 20 February. It stated that a cash injection of  £1m “will buy time with creditors”; however, it also states that the company is seeking an additional £9mn to develop a new AI-powered cruise-control system to reduce carbon emissions in non-hydrogen trucks. 

The open letter also stated that it is “hopeful” Barclays Climate Ventures would “help save HVS”. Barclays has a £500m climate technology fund, but no history of investments into HVS. The Financial Times reached out to the British bank regarding a potential investment, but it declined to comment.