About Decahyrdon
Our Story
Decahydron was founded out of a desire to tackle the need for clean energy and carbon sequestration at massive scale.
Arnaud Lager, Decahydron’s founder, saw how much effort was being poured into injecting CO₂ into oil wells for enhanced oil recovery. As a geologist walking the mountains of Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE, an area rich in ultramafic rock, he saw a better way: inject CO₂ into these rocks instead to produce clean hydrogen and permanently lock away carbon.
Oil companies had drilled ultramafic formations in the past looking for hydrocarbons, but instead, they found hydrogen and walked away. Decahydron was established around one of these abandoned wells to validate a new opportunity.
Just three years later, with the support of academic partners including iCRAG and the University of Edinburgh, we are now preparing for pilot testing and positioning ourselves to explore and deliver across the northern Emirates and beyond.
What We Do
• Commercially scaling natural hydrogen through induced generation, enabling consistent, viable production from vast reserves trapped in ultramafic rock
• Delivering permanent carbon storage by harnessing the natural ability of ultramafic rocks to mineralise and store CO₂ as carbonates, at gigaton scale
• Enabling hard-to-abate sectors to decarbonise through clean hydrogen production and geological CO₂ removal
Decahydron already holds exclusive mineral rights to sites in the northern Emirates, targeting ultramafic rock formations with high natural hydrogen potential. It is also actively exploring the potential of other ultramafic formations globally.
Our Team
Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Ireland, Decahydron brings together a team of scientists, engineers, and commercial advisors with deep experience across the energy, carbon removal, and geology sectors. Together, we are united in our mission to change the economics of hydrogen and carbon storage, accelerate the energy transition, and make a measurable contribution in the fight against climate change.
Arnaud Lager
Chief Executive Officer
Arnaud Lager is the founder and CEO of Decahydron, bringing over 25 years of experience in geochemistry and reservoir engineering across the oil, gas, and CCUS sectors. He played a key role in the Al Reyadah project in the UAE, which captures 800,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually, demonstrating his track record of delivering scalable, world-first carbon projects. Arnaud’s expertise in multiphase flow dynamics and geochemical modelling underpins Decahydron’s dual approach to natural hydrogen production and CO₂ mineralisation. His vision is to turn geology into a scalable solution for clean energy and carbon removal – unlocking new climate technology from ancient rock formations.
Les Hofmeister
Director of Subsurface
With nearly four decades of global experience in oil and gas, Les Hofmeister leads Decahydron’s subsurface operations. He has held senior technical and leadership roles in Kuwait, the UAE, and Kurdistan, where he helped scale the Peshkabir Field to 50,000 barrels per day. As former advisor to the Minister of Natural Resources in Kurdistan, Les oversaw field development plans for 16 operators. His deep reservoir expertise, particularly in the Middle East, strengthens Decahydron’s ability to identify, evaluate, and optimise hydrogen and carbon storage opportunities in complex geological settings.
Patrick Buttimer
Chief Strategy Officer
Patrick Buttimer is a seasoned entrepreneur and strategist with 20+ years of leadership experience across technology and telecoms. As CSO, he brings a proven track record of scaling startups into global players and leading successful acquisitions. Formerly MD of UnSiEn and CEO of Eirteic (now Oracle), Patrick has delivered operational solutions across 30+ countries. With a background in business, management, and computer science, he now drives Decahydron’s commercial strategy, helping align its technology roadmap with investor expectations and market growth.
Oakley Turner
Chief Geologist
Oakley Turner brings over ten years of global experience in geology, with expertise in mineral exploration, mining operations, and resource estimation. He has worked for Anglo American, Stevin Rock, and Allied Gold. At Decahydron, Oakley leads geological analysis of natural hydrogen and CO₂ mineralisation prospects, with a focus on ultramafic formations and subsurface innovation.