Lhyfe to slash workforce as part of plan to cut costs by 30%
Source：hydrogeninsight
French green hydrogen producer Lhyfe is to cut jobs as part of a planned 30% cost reduction programme across the business, the company confirmed yesterday (Tuesday).
Lhyfe originally announced the cost reduction target in December last year, however it has since pushed back against local reports suggesting that around half the workforce is now facing the axe.
The exact number of job losses will be determined upon completion of “ongoing social negotiations”, the company said in a business update yesterday, referring to the trade union negotiations common in France.
French newspaper La Tribune reported last week that the firm was preparing a plan to cut around 100 jobs, citing multiple sources. The firm currently employs over 200 people, according to its website.
The French newspaper added that planned job cuts would affect all departments, from engineering to support functions, and would extend to several countries in Europe.
Lhyfe said at the time that the reported job-cut figures “do not reflect reality”.
“A procedure is currently underway, in accordance with the applicable labour law framework, but it has not yet been finalised. For this reason, Lhyfe is not in a position to communicate precise figures at this stage,” a Lhyfe spokesperson told Hydrogen Insight.
“The only figure communicated so far relates to the overall cost-control target (30%), although it cannot be considered a definitive headcount figure while the procedure is ongoing.”
Lhyfe, which noted that the reorganisation would see it outsourcing engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) for its next projects, said the impact of the cost-cutting programme will be communicated in its 2025 annual results, to be released in March 2026.
As Hydrogen Insight has previously reported, Lhyfe doubled revenue in 2025 to about €10m ($11.7m) up from around €5m in 2024.
But the company warned that it achieved these figures despite a European “political and regulatory context that does not favour rapid market development”.
Member states have been slow to transpose regulation, Lhyfe said, while the market is developing quickly in other regions where regulatory frameworks have been established.
“While the market's development is clear, it remains selective and slower-paced, calling for appropriate management and alignment of the company's resources, as well as the prioritisation of investments in order to accelerate the path to breakeven and drive profitability,” Lhyfe said, having made an identical statement in its previous update at the end of last year.
As a result, Lhyfe is planning strategic changes for 2026, including prioritising projects focused on mobility, UK industry and European refineries.
Last month, Lhyfe suspended a 100MW-plus green hydrogen project at the former Fonderies du Poitou industrial site in western France after failing to secure subsidies from the French government.
This article was updated on 4 February to include comment from Lhyfe.