Newlight Raises $9M to Cut Cargo Ship Fuel Use With Hydrogen Injection

Newlight, a San Francisco Bay Area-based energy startup, has raised $9 million in seed funding to scale its hydrogen-injection technology designed to improve the efficiency of diesel-powered cargo ships.

The startup has developed a retrofit system that injects compressed hydrogen into existing marine diesel engines at precisely controlled moments. Newlight says the technology can reduce fuel consumption and emissions without requiring major modifications or taking vessels into dry dock.

Newlight Raises $9M Seed Round

The funding round includes investments from lomarlabs, the venture arm of Lomar Shipping, BIRD Energy, Undeterred Capital, CiRi Ventures and Fusion VC.

Newlight was founded by Evyatar Cohen and Haran Cohen Hillel, with Hillel serving as CEO. The two co-founders bring experience from the Israeli Navy and are focused on applying hydrogen technology to one of the world's most difficult transportation sectors to decarbonise.

The company plans to use the funding to expand its technology and commercial deployment across the shipping industry.

Hydrogen Injection for Existing Diesel Engines

Rather than replacing a vessel's existing diesel engine, Newlight's system works as a retrofit.

The technology continuously monitors engine conditions, including exhaust temperature, combustion pressure and air intake pressure. It then determines when and how much hydrogen should be injected into the engine, adjusting the flow at millisecond-level intervals.

The objective is to allow the engine to use less conventional fuel while maintaining performance.

Newlight says its retrofit can be installed in less than two weeks without requiring a dry dock, potentially making deployment easier for existing commercial vessels.

8,500-Nautical-Mile Commercial Test

The company recently completed its first long-distance commercial voyage using the technology.

Newlight installed its system on a 650-foot Lomar Shipping bulk carrier for an 8,500-nautical-mile journey from Singapore to Ghana.

During the month-long voyage, Newlight reported a 24% reduction in fuel consumption and a 28% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions.

The startup says the results demonstrated that its hydrogen-injection technology could operate reliably under real-world marine conditions rather than only in laboratory testing.

Potential Savings for Shipping Operators

Fuel represents a major operating cost for cargo ships, making efficiency improvements commercially attractive alongside their environmental benefits.

Newlight claims its system can reduce fuel consumption and emissions by more than 20%, with some vessels potentially saving up to $500,000 annually.

The technology could therefore offer shipping companies a way to reduce operating costs while lowering emissions without immediately replacing their existing propulsion systems.

12 Vessels Already Signed

Newlight says it has already signed agreements to deploy its hydrogen-injection technology across 12 vessels operated by multiple companies.

The startup expects broader fleet rollouts to follow next year as it moves from initial commercial testing toward larger-scale deployments.

The company is currently focused on shipping, although its founders see potential applications for the technology in other transportation and energy-intensive sectors, including trains and data centres.

A Different Approach to Maritime Decarbonisation

The maritime industry is exploring several alternative fuels and technologies to reduce emissions, including ammonia, methanol and hydrogen.

Newlight is taking a different approach by adding hydrogen injection to existing diesel engines rather than requiring an entirely new propulsion system.

If the company's reported performance can be replicated across different vessels and operating conditions, retrofit technologies like this could provide shipping operators with another pathway to improve efficiency while the industry transitions toward lower-carbon fuels.

With $9 million in fresh capital, a completed 8,500-nautical-mile commercial voyage and agreements covering 12 vessels, Newlight is now looking to scale its hydrogen-injection technology across the global shipping industry.