Military Fuel Stations and Trucks... Korea Introduces 'Hydrogen Economy' Expansion to the World

Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Attends the 33rd International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE) General Meeting
"Exploring Multilateral Cooperation Strategies to Revitalize the Hydrogen Economy"

President Moon Jae-in asking questions about hydrogen fuel cell utilization. The third person from the right in the front row is President Moon, the far left is Sung Yun-mo, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the second from the left is Chung Eui-sun, Executive Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] South Korea showcased its cases of spreading the 'hydrogen economy' worldwide, including military hydrogen charging stations, hydrogen trucks, and hydrogen taxis.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 21st that it conveyed this message while attending the '33rd International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE)' General Meeting held from the 16th to the 19th.

Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), this meeting was conducted via video conference, with participants including officials and experts from 20 countries such as the United States, China, Japan, and the European Union (EU).

At the meeting, multilateral cooperation measures to revitalize the global hydrogen economy were discussed. Each country shared the progress of hydrogen economy initiatives since the 32nd General Meeting held in Seoul last October.

Cooperation plans with multilateral energy consultative bodies such as the Hydrogen Energy Ministerial Meeting (HEM), Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) Hydrogen Initiative, and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) were also discussed.

South Korea introduced that it enacted the world's first Hydrogen Act (Act on the Promotion of Hydrogen Economy and Hydrogen Safety Management) in January this year.

It highlighted efforts to expand the hydrogen economy into defense, logistics, commercial, and public transportation sectors.

A representative example is the 'Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Mutual Cooperation for Military Hydrogen Utilization' signed on the 16th.

Also mentioned were the MoUs signed last month, including the 'MoU for the Pilot Project of Hydrogen Freight Vehicle Deployment,' 'MoU for Hydrogen Truck Demonstration Cooperation,' and 'MoU for Hydrogen Taxi Demonstration Cooperation.'

The private sector requested continuous support from governments worldwide. Hyundai Motor Group Vice Chairman Chung Euisun stated in a video seminar on the third day that sustained government support is necessary for the rise of the hydrogen industry.

Vice Chairman Chung is the co-chair of the 'Global CEO Council for the Expansion of the Hydrogen Economy.'

An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "The role of multilateral consultative bodies is very important for South Korea to lead the global hydrogen economy," adding, "We will continue to actively participate in international consultative bodies such as IPHE and continuously strengthen cooperation efforts in the hydrogen economy."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.