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Irish aquaculture technology company Nernst Electric has raised $2 million (€1.75 million) in seed funding from Hatch Blue’s Blue Revolution Fund to develop its on-site oxygen generation system.
The Bray-based company is developing equipment that uses ceramic membranes to separate oxygen from ambient air, producing oxygen with a claimed purity of more than 99% directly at fish farming sites.
Fish farms commonly use liquid oxygen transported from central production facilities or generate it on site using pressure swing adsorption or vacuum swing adsorption systems. However, deliveries can be costly and logistically difficult, particularly for farms in remote coastal areas.
Nernst says its system could reduce the cost and energy use associated with oxygen supply while limiting farms’ dependence on external deliveries.
The new funding will be used to construct a demonstration unit and assess its performance in a commercial farming environment. If successful, the trial is expected to lead to customer demonstrations and preparations for a Series A fundraising round.
“For decades, the limitations of conventional on-site oxygen generation have held back productivity across industries including aquaculture, mining, metallurgy, and steelmaking,” said Nernst Electric CEO and co-founder Nick Farandos.
“Our breakthrough reactor technology removes those barriers, enabling the most efficient oxygen production at any scale with near-zero maintenance and the industry's lowest operating costs,” he added.
Nernst also said it sees potential applications for its technology outside aquaculture, including mining, steel production and the energy sector, where oxygen is used in large volumes.
The company, which was founded in 2023, joined Hatch Blue’s portfolio in July 2025 after receiving pre-seed backing from Hatch Accelerator Fund II and taking part in the investment firm’s accelerator programme. It later participated in an Aquatech Innovation Studio run by Hatch Blue and Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), Ireland’s seafood development agency.
“Since Nernst joined our Accelerator Fund, their progress has been fast and convincing," said Caitriona Kelleher, managing director of early-stage investments at Hatch Blue. "The team came in with a manufacturing concept and have built it into a working system ready for its first aquaculture deployment. That kind of technical execution is impressive – and it is precisely why the Blue Revolution Fund is the right backer to take it further."
Carsten Krome, managing partner and co-founder of Hatch Blue, said the investment reflected the fund’s interest in technologies developed for aquaculture that could also serve wider industrial markets.
“Aquaculture is generating commercially attractive innovation at pace, and the sector's own fundamentals are strong. Much of that innovation also has reach well beyond it,” he said. “Nernst is a clear example: the platform that solves critical oxygen supply for fish farms has industrial-scale application across heavy industry. That is exactly what gives the Blue Revolution Fund the conviction to back it.”
The CEO of Irish seafood development agency BIM Richard Donnelly said the announcement demonstrated "continued investor appetite for financing Irish aquatech, and the growing recognition that aquaculture can meet rising global demands for sustainable and nutritious food,” adding, "Efficiency and sustainability are the key components of Nernst technologies - a key concern for aquaculture operators the world over, who want to lower costs and emissions.”
