Niche technology company Environmental Clean Technologies will build a hydrogen-producing plant to demonstrate the commercial viability of its technology, which it says can produce net zero hydrogen from brown coal without the need for carbon capture and storage.

ASX-listed ECT announced the building plans after it struck a deal with GrapheneX. The plant is expected to be operational within 18 months, which ECT said will be the springboard for its expansion plans into the Latrobe Valley.