Hydrogen Energy Development Status in China
 
Lijun Jiang
 
GRINM (Guangdong) Institute for Advanced Materials and Technology,
Chancheng District, Foshan City, Guangdong Province
 
Hydrogen energy has been included in China's national development strategy in order to ensure energy security and achieve carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals. Following the release of the hydrogen energy industry plan in 2022, the "Energy Law of the People's Republic of China" issued in 2024 officially incorporated hydrogen energy into the national energy system. Currently, 30 provinces and municipalities have issued 560 special policies for the hydrogen energy industry. Hydrogen energy has entered a new stage of development driven by both energy security and the dual carbon goals. Green hydrogen is not only a partial substitute for transportation fuel but also become a new cornerstone for building a green and low-carbon industrial and energy system. The development of fuel cell vehicles has laid a solid foundation for the hydrogen energy industry. China has 28,000 fuel cell vehicles in operation and has built 540 hydrogen refueling stations up to now, initially forming a hydrogen supply chain for hydrogen transportation and a fuel cell industry chain. The cost of fuel cells has dropped to one-seventh of what it was ten years ago, and the cost of on-board hydrogen storage systems has decreased to one-fourth. The cost of building hydrogen refueling stations has also dropped to one-second. Potential industrial applications of green hydrogen will further drive the scale development of the hydrogen energy industry. Currently, the cumulative production capacity of green hydrogen has reached 125,000 tons. The technical level of alkaline electrolysis water hydrogen production has rapidly improved, and costs have significantly decreased. Currently, the general electrolyzer capacity is 1,000 m3/h, with a direct power consumption of 4.3 kWh/m3.H2 and a unit price of 1,200 yuan/kW, which is only one-half of what it was three years ago. China GRINM Group is an important member of China's hydrogen energy team. In the field of solid state hydrogen storage, it has taken the lead in carrying out more than 10 application demonstrations in fuel cell vehicles, distributed energy supply and large-scale hydrogen storage.