Hyundai Motor and Kia Sign Agreement with NextHydrogen Canada to Develop High-Performance Water Electrolysis System

Focusing on Improving Performance of Core Electrolyzer System 'Stack'... Promoting Commercialization of Green Hydrogen

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] Hyundai Motor Company and Kia announced on the 9th that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the "Joint Development and Commercialization of Electrolyzer Systems for Green Hydrogen Production" with Next Hydrogen, a Canadian manufacturer of water electrolysis systems.

Green hydrogen is hydrogen produced by electrolyzing water using electricity supplied from renewable energy sources. Unlike gray hydrogen (extracted from fossil fuels) or blue hydrogen (produced by capturing and storing carbon dioxide generated during gray hydrogen extraction), green hydrogen does not emit any carbon dioxide during the hydrogen production process. However, it has the disadvantage of high production costs.

Accordingly, Hyundai Motor Company, Kia, and Next Hydrogen agreed on the necessity to reduce the production cost and expand the supply of green hydrogen through the development of high-performance and high-efficiency electrolyzer systems, leading to this agreement.

First, Hyundai Motor Company, Kia, and Next Hydrogen will focus on improving the stack performance, which is the core of alkaline electrolyzer systems. The stack is the key component of the electrolyzer system, and higher efficiency can lower production costs. The goal is to develop the stack to operate under high current density conditions to enable stable production of large amounts of hydrogen.

In this process, Hyundai Motor Company and Kia will be responsible for developing core components such as electrodes, bipolar plates, and current collectors inside the stack, as well as evaluating the performance of the developed stack. Next Hydrogen will be responsible for the design and manufacturing of the stack.

The three companies expect that through the development of this high-performance stack and its application to the system, they will improve the shortcomings of alkaline electrolyzer systems, which have relatively low operating current densities, and increase the hydrogen production efficiency of the electrolyzer equipment itself, thereby contributing to a significant reduction in high production costs.

They also aim to complete the stack development by next year, apply it to the electrolyzer system, and conduct demonstration evaluations. Additionally, they plan to discuss further technology development and business cooperation plans using this system. Oh Jae-hyuk, Executive Director of the Energy New Business Promotion Office at Hyundai Motor Company and Kia, stated, "We expect to supply competitively priced green hydrogen by leveraging technological synergy with Next Hydrogen," adding, "Hyundai Motor Company and Kia will continue their efforts to accelerate the commercialization of green hydrogen and build a hydrogen economy through various business agreements."

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