Support for Hydrogen Refueling Station Fuel Purchase Costs... Ministry of Environment "Average Benefit of 90 Million Won"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of Environment will newly support hydrogen fuel purchase costs from next year to improve the operating conditions of hydrogen charging stations.

Hydrogen charging stations are currently experiencing an average annual operating deficit of about 150 million KRW due to high hydrogen purchase costs and a shortage of hydrogen vehicles. To address this, the Ministry of Environment will launch a new hydrogen fuel purchase support project with next year's budget.

The support will cover the high hydrogen fuel purchase costs, which are the biggest factor in operating deficits at hydrogen charging stations, while setting upper and lower limits to provide appropriate levels of support.

The support amount will be calculated as 70% of the difference between the current hydrogen fuel purchase unit price and the standard unit price at which operators can break even.

For operators facing difficulties due to low hydrogen sales volume and insufficient fuel cost difference subsidies, a minimum of 70 million KRW will be provided per charging station, with adjustments made to ensure that the support amount does not exceed 80% of the total deficit.

The level of support per hydrogen charging station will be detailed later based on this year's operating results. On average, about 90 million KRW is expected to be supported per station. The Ministry of Environment also stated that it will continue close, phased support to expand hydrogen charging stations.

Additionally, the Ministry plans to accelerate the expansion of hydrogen charging stations through discovering new sites, improving systems for rapid permits and approvals, and organic project management on-site.

Kim Seung-hee, Director of Air Quality Policy at the Ministry of Environment, said, "We expect that supporting hydrogen fuel purchase costs will drive the revitalization of hydrogen charging station businesses," and added, "The government will continue to do its best to resolve difficulties faced by hydrogen charging station operators."

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