ZeroAvia is exploring cryo-compressed hydrogen to produce longer-range planes
Hydrogen-electric plane aviation technology developer ZeroAvia is exploring a form of energy-dense fuel to develop aircraft that can refuel faster and potentially fly farther. The company has signed a memorandum of understanding with hydrogen tech startup Verne to co-develop the plane integrations.
Following a series of milestones in the past decade, ZeroAvia sits closer than ever to delivering commercial operations of hydrogen-electric planes en route to its goal of achieving a 40- to 80-seat aircraft with up to 700 miles of range by 2027.
We’ve already seen the company achieve experimental flight certificates from the CAA in the UK and the FAA in the US, and it’s been one year since it completed its first flight with a 19-passenger hydrogen-electric plane.
September 2023 brought several new partnerships and a fresh round of funding led by Airbus, Barclays, and Saudi Arabia’s “living laboratory,” NEOM. In late November, ZeroAvia announced a deal to provide up to 70 zero-emission planes to sustainable startup airline EcoJet, which looks to become the world’s first all-electric airline.
As more and more airlines take notice of the viable solutions hydrogen and electric planes can provide, ZeroAvia is now optimizing its technology to provide aircraft that can refuel faster, cheaper, and fly farther. To do so, it has enlisted the help of hydrogen fuel specialist Verne.
ZeroAvia taps Verne to optimize its hydrogen planes
Per news from ZeroAvia today, it has signed a MOU with Verne to jointly explore the potential of cryo-compressed hydrogen (CcH2) as a viable source of zero-emissions fuel for planes. Verne currently operates as a hydrogen storage and refueling startup focused on heavy-duty mobility.
Verne specializes in cryo-compressed hydrogen, which stores gaseous hydrogen at cold temperatures, thus increasing the fuel’s energy density. Through its research, Verne states CcH2 can deliver 40% greater usable hydrogen density compared to liquid hydrogen and 200% percent more usable hydrogen density than (350 bar) gaseous hydrogen.
In addition to providing a more extended range to ZeroAvia’s future electric planes, Verne says cryo-compressed hydrogen can significantly reduce densification costs and refueling times compared to liquid hydrogen while increasing dormancy time and potentially eliminating any need for pressure management, e.g., venting. Per Verne co-founder and CEO Ted McKlveen:
Aviation is a massive potential market for Verne, as it becomes clear that hydrogen is critical to tackling the industry’s climate impact. Airports can be centers of hydrogen activity, with co-located hydrogen demand for aircraft, airport ground operations, and on-road commercial transportation. Cryo-compressed hydrogen has a key role in optimizing this ecosystem.
Verne has already developed systems that can deliver 4 MWh of hydrogen storage, backed by several grants, including Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund. Following today’s partnership announcement, ZeroAvia will work alongside Verne to assess the potential benefits of scaled CcH2 storage and refueling infrastructure at airports. That process will begin with an initial model implemented at airports in California.
As ZeroAvia and other electric plane developers look to take to the skies in more extensive and efficient vessels, cryo-compressed hydrogen could serve as the novel technology for those planes. This is an exciting development as aviation accounts for 10% of all US transportation greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 3% of the US total emissions, per the EPA.
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Tesla has wiped off the 26,000 miles on the odometer of a Cybertruck in service, scratched the vehicle, and then returned it to the owner like nothing happened.
A Tesla Cybertruck owner in Oregon was quite surprised when he went to pick up his Cybertruck, which was in service to install a new lightbar, fix some panel gaps, and figure out an ABS alert that wouldn’t go away.
According to a thread on the Cybertruck Owners Club, Tesla had wiped the odometer clean on the Foundation Series ‘Cyberbeast’, which had over 26,000 miles on it.
The owner shared a video of the Cybertruck’s odometer going from 0 to 1 mile for the second time:
The odometer on the vehicle was wiped and both the app and service many also showed the same mileage.
The owner shared a screenshot of the app after 15 miles:
He went to the online forum for advice:
Anyone else have their odometer Thanos-snapped after a controller swap? Can Tesla unsnap it or am I forever “True Mileage Unknown”?
Interestingly, Tesla is currently being sued for allegedly messing with the odometers of its vehicles. However, the lawsuit is for accelerating the mileage, not reducing it, like in this case.
It was not the only surprise from this service visit for this Cybertruck owner.
The owner was not satisfied with the lightbar installation, which he claims has a half-inch gap on the passenger side while it is flush on the driver side. He wrote:
It’s basically smiling sideways at everyone.
It’s also unclear why Tesla was messing with the vehicle’s tailgate, but it ended up having a bolt moving around it, causing scratches and Tesla left a bolt unbolted:
At this point, the truck was returned with more problems than it had when it entered service.
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Nissan is on the brink of collapsing. After the Honda deal fell through, it looks like another Japanese automaker is tossing it a lifeline. As Nissan struggles to stay afloat, Toyota is emerging as a potential “backer” in a new tie-up.
Are Toyota and Nissan partnering?
“If we don’t take action now, the situation will only get worse,” Nissan’s President, Ivan Espinosa, said during a press conference on May 13.
Facing falling sales, ballooning debt, and slumping profits, Nissan introduced a new recovery plan last week, “Re:Nissan.” The struggling automaker aims to cut costs by 250 billion yen to return to profitability by FY 2026.
As part of its efforts to turn the business around, Nissan will cut 20,000 jobs by FY2027. It’s also abandoning plans to build a new EV battery facility in Japan. Seven other plants will be closed, including one in Thailand and two in Japan.
After its planned EV merger with Honda fell through in February, rumours surfaced that Nissan was scrambling to find another partner.
According to a new report from Japan’s MainiChi, a Toyota executive recently reached out to Nissan about a potential partnership. The tie-up could involve Toyota acting as Nissan’s “backer” to support it while it restructures.
Nissan and Toyota both unveiled a wave of new electric vehicles set to roll out over the next few years. The upgraded Nissan LEAF EV will arrive in the US and Canada later this year with more range, an NACS port, and a new crossover style. It will be one of ten new Nissan or Infiniti models to arrive by 2027.
In Europe, Nissan will launch the next-gen LEAF later this year, followed by the new Micra EV and Qashqai electric crossover. In 2026, the new Nissan Juke EV will join the lineup.
Meanwhile, Toyota’s upgraded bZ electric SUV (formerly the “bZ4X”) will arrive at US dealerships in the second half of 2025.
In 2026, the smaller C-HR electric SUV and rugged bZ Woodland EV will follow. By the end of the year, Europe will see three new Toyota electric SUVs: the C-HR+, Urban Cruiser, and upgraded bZ4X.
Electrek’s Take
Toyota already has a stake in several Japanese automakers, including Subaru (20%), Mazda (5.1%), Suzuki (4.6%), and Isuzu (5.9%), so backing Nissan wouldn’t come as a shock.
Espinosa said Nissan was open to new partnerships. Nissan’s chief said the company will continue collaborating with others, including Mitsubishi, which will use the upcoming LEAF as the basis for its new EV for North America.
Japanese carmakers have been notoriously slow in shifting to all-electric vehicles, which is now costing them in key overseas markets like Southeast Asia, Central and South America, and others.
Chinese EV leaders, like BYD, are quickly expanding overseas to drive growth this year. Next year, it will launch its first kei car (see the first spy shots), or mini EV, which is already being called “a huge threat” to Japan.
Pooling resources and teaming up may be the best (or only) option at this point. Can Toyota help Nissan turn things around? Or will it be too little, too late? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Check back soon for details. This is a developing story. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.
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