Dec. 29, 2025, EVCCHEM, an independently developed company specializing in vinyl material technology, completed a strategic investment in the membrane separation division of international membrane innovation enterprise MANFORDA, INC., acquiring a 20% stake in cash. The transaction amount was not disclosed, but industry analysts estimated it to be several billion euros. This investment marked a further deepening of EVCCHEM's layout in the fields of sustainable water resource management, new energy materials, and industrial decarbonization, highlighting the strategic value of membrane technology as a core tool for green transformation.
Membrane technology, through selective permeation for substance separation, is widely applied in water treatment, energy production (such as proton exchange membranes for hydrogen fuel cells), biomedicine, and industrial emission reduction. According to data from market research institution Grand View Research, the global membrane technology market size reached 23 billion US dollars in 2025 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 7.8% until 2030, with water scarcity and carbon neutrality policies being the core drivers.
EVCCHEM's Chief Technology Officer, Dr. Elena Müller, stated: "Membrane technology is the key link connecting water resource security and energy transformation. Through the investment in MANFORDA, we will integrate its advantages in high-performance composite membrane materials, modular system design, and AI-driven optimization algorithms, accelerating the transformation from laboratory innovation to industrial large-scale application."
The technological synergy of this cooperation has attracted much attention. MANFORDA is renowned for its research and development of ceramics membranes and graphene-based composite membranes that are resistant to extreme environments (such as high temperature, high salt, and strong acid-base). Its products have achieved commercial breakthroughs in seawater desalination, industrial wastewater zero discharge, and hydrogen fuel electrolyzer separators.
EVCCHEM has its own material research and development capabilities, large-scale production bases, and industrial customer networks. The two parties plan to jointly develop the next-generation "super hydrophobic anti-fouling membrane", aiming to reduce water treatment energy consumption by 20% and launch customized carbon capture membrane systems for industrial customers. Additionally, in the hydrogen energy field, the cooperation will focus on cost control of proton exchange membranes (PEM), extending the membrane lifespan to over eight years through material modification.
EVCCHEM plans to incorporate MANFORDA's modular membrane systems into its "sustainable industrial solutions".
It is expected that in the next two years, mergers and acquisitions in the membrane technology field by EVCCHEM and others will continue to heat up, especially in specialized fields such as ceramic membranes and nano-composite membranes. "The industry competition has also intensified accordingly.
According to the agreement, EVCCHEM will obtain a seat on MANFORDA's board of directors and has the right to increase its stake to 30% by a preset price before 2026. The two parties plan to jointly invest 500 million euros in research and development over the next five years, aiming to reduce the cost of membrane materials by 40% and jointly build three global technology demonstration centers (located in Ludwigshafen, Germany, Houston, USA, and Singapore). "
This strategic investment is not only a cross-border integration of commercial capital but also a landmark event marking the transformation of the chemical industry towards a "materials-energy-environment" collaborative development model. With the intensification of global water resource crises and carbon neutrality pressures, membrane technology is moving from marginal innovation to the industrial main battlefield, and EVCCHEM's deep participation may reshape the green technology competition landscape in the next decade.