Milton Park has become home to one of the UK’s most advanced green-tech manufacturing platforms, created by clean-tech innovator Nium.
The Earthshot Prize-nominated company is tackling one of the planet’s most polluting industrial processes, the Haber-Bosch method, by producing fully renewable, low-carbon ammonia. When no existing equipment met their precise atomic-level needs, Nium designed and built its own solution.
The result is a unique catalyst manufacturing platform, housed in the company’s bespoke R&D facility, the Nanosphere. Supported by Innovate UK, the new platform is believed to be the largest of its kind in the UK and marks a significant step forward for sustainable manufacturing.
Phil Hunter, Nium’s Co-Founder and CEO, said:
“The challenge with creating revolutionary new materials isn’t just in their design, but in their manufacturing. We found that no off-the-shelf equipment could deliver the precision needed for our advanced catalysts, so we had to invent our own solution from the ground up. As we outgrew our previous labs, Milton Park gave us the space and flexibility to build this unique manufacturing platform within our own bespoke, purpose-built R&D facilities.”
Nium’s process uses nanotechnology to create ammonia without burning fossil fuels, drawing hydrogen from water and nitrogen from the air. This approach greatly reduces energy use and emissions and can be powered entirely by renewable energy.
Tom Booker, Commercial Manager at MEPC Milton Park, said:
“Nium’s launch is a fantastic home-grown story of British innovation. It was excellent to support the team’s move into the Park last year and since then, see them grow their operations before delivering a UK-first of this scale. Milton Park’s flexible leases, space, connectivity and access to world-class talent have helped make that possible. We’re proud to support the team’s growth journey and to provide a home where likeminded green-tech innovators can take on global challenges and deliver solutions for a more sustainable future.”
The new facility strengthens Oxfordshire’s position as a centre for clean growth and advanced manufacturing, supporting technologies that can help decarbonise industry and accelerate the transition to a sustainable future.
