About LAVO
Hello World.
We are LAVO.
We started in Sydney with ten years of hydrogen research and one stubborn question: could any of it be installed on a real site? Getting there takes researchers, engineers, manufacturers and operators all pulling the same way. So that is what we set out to get together.
Our story
From a decade of research to an installable energy system.
LAVO was founded in Sydney in 2020 with a clear objective: take more than ten years of research into metal hydride hydrogen storage and turn it into infrastructure that organisations could install and operate.
That transition demanded more than a laboratory breakthrough. The technology had to become a complete product—integrating hydrogen production, safe solid-state storage, power generation and controls within an industrial system designed for demanding commercial environments.
Today, LAVO is building the capability required to deliver that system at scale: an international technology supply chain, award-winning industrial design and operations extending into Japan.
Milestones
Built step by step.
LAVO’s progress combines product development, international design recognition and expansion into Japan.
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2020
Founded in Sydney
LAVO is established to commercialise long-duration metal hydride hydrogen energy storage.
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2021
First products and design recognition
The first LAVO products bring the storage technology into an integrated, installable form and begin receiving international design recognition.
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2022
Global design awards
LAVO receives the Red Dot: Best of the Best and the iF Gold Award for the product’s architectural approach to industrial design.
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2024
LAVO Japan established
A Japanese subsidiary expands LAVO’s presence in a market with significant demand for resilient, long-duration energy storage.
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2025
Global deployment begins
LAVO starts deploying systems internationally, and begins research and development directed at the Japanese market.
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2026
New HESS development, and a two-wheeler study
Development begins on a new generation of HESS products, alongside an exploration of solid-state hydrogen storage for two-wheeled vehicles.
Recent updates
What has happened this year.
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March 2026 Tokyo, Japan
LAVO HESS now fully operational at the University of Tokyo
A LAVO hydrogen energy storage system has been delivered, installed and brought into operation at the Research Centre for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST), on the university's Komaba campus.
- Built to an outdoor-rated, compact form made to fit the campus's spatial limits.
- An anion exchange membrane electrolyser produces hydrogen at more than 100 NL/h, held below 1 MPa.
- Four metal hydride cartridges store 20,000 to 21,000 NL of hydrogen — up to 40 kWh.
- A 5 kW PEM fuel cell and a 5 kWh lithium-ion battery control and steady the power in and out.
- Monitored remotely through the LAVO web portal, with its own pure-water production on board.
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May 2026 Sydney, NSW
LAVO and Gas Concept partner on hydrogen storage in South Africa
A Memorandum of Understanding with Gas Concept Sales (Pty) Ltd, a South African engineering and market access specialist, covers localisation, deployment, manufacture and commercialisation of LAVO's metal hydride storage and HESS.
- Gas Concept will establish local manufacture and assembly of compliant metal hydride storage modules, with LAVO supplying materials and technical guidance.
- The two will study a regional metal hydride material facility, so the supply chain can stand on its own.
- LAVO may buy South African-made vessels back into its global projects.
- Target sectors are telecom tower backup, utilities and remote microgrids, and industrial mobility — mining, forklifts and mobile generators.
- Demonstration opportunities within six months, pilot deployments within twelve, and small-batch commercial deployment from 2027.
Work with LAVO
Planning energy resilience for a critical site?
Talk to our team about your load profile, operating environment and long-duration storage requirements.
Contact LAVO