Hydrogen Optimized Inc., a subsidiary of Key DH Technologies Inc. (KEY), today announced that Denis Krude, former CEO of green hydrogen technology company thyssenkrupp nucera, will be appointed President and CEO starting April 8, 2024.
Company Co-Founder Andrew Stuart will continue to play an active leadership role at Hydrogen Optimized as Executive Chair, according to a news release.
Krude joined the thyssenkrupp Group, one of Germany’s largest industrial companies, in 1998. At thyssenkrupp Uhde, a chemical plant manufacturer, he held a series of progressively senior management positions. From 2016 to 2023, he served as CEO and a Member of the Executive Board at thyssenkrupp nucera, a leading technology and plant engineering company specializing in water electrolysis and green hydrogen. Among his accomplishments there, in 2021-2022 Krude and his team prepared the company for an IPO, leading investor meetings and other activities that set the stage for its successful 2023 public listing.
“The unique focus of Hydrogen Optimized on large-scale water electrolysis solutions for major, hard-to-abate industries aligns with my view that this market segment offers the most significant opportunity in clean hydrogen,” Denis Krude said. “With a strong foundation built on the Stuart family’s 120-year legacy in high-power water electrolysis, I see enormous opportunity for Hydrogen Optimized to become a world leader in clean hydrogen.”
The company’s patented RuggedCell™ system enables clean hydrogen plants up to gigawatt scale. The RuggedCell™ is a precious metal-free, high power alkaline water electrolyzer with a 0-100% dynamic range. Through a strategic relationship with ABB, an investor in KEY, Hydrogen Optimized has strengthened the RuggedCell™ offering through access to ABB’s world-leading power and automation technologies.
Krude, a 54-year-old German national, was born in Spain.
