Changwon City's Efforts to Advance the Hydrogen Industry Shine... Wins Excellence Award at the '2021 Local Regulatory Innovation Competition'

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Sang-hyun] Changwon City in Gyeongnam was selected for the Excellence Award at the '2021 Local Regulatory Innovation Best Practices Competition' hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, receiving a ministerial citation and an incentive of 100 million KRW in special grants.

According to the city on the 15th, this competition was held to evaluate 10 cases selected after two rounds of screening from 85 regulatory innovation cases submitted by local governments nationwide.

The city received favorable reviews for presenting the case of "Supporting Commercialization of Hydrogen Tram through Close Support of Regulatory Sandbox," promoted by the Strategic Industry Division.

This case improved the regulation that, under the current Enforcement Rules of the High-Pressure Gas Safety Control Act, only hydrogen vehicles can be refueled at hydrogen charging stations, making it impossible to charge other hydrogen mobility such as hydrogen electric trams, forklifts, and excavators.

Additionally, since hydrogen charging stations are not included in the occupancy permit targets under the Enforcement Decree of the Act on Urban Parks and Green Areas, making it difficult to establish hydrogen charging stations, the city applied for a demonstration exception for driving tests for commercialization of hydrogen electric trams and an integrated hydrogen charging station for hydrogen mobility together with local companies.

Through the department's active efforts and support, regulatory sandbox approval was obtained, enabling driving tests of hydrogen electric trams and the construction of integrated hydrogen charging stations.

Mayor Heo Seong-mu said, "We have been expanding infrastructure and continuously supporting related companies to foster the hydrogen industry, which was like a barren land until now. In particular, through efforts to improve outdated laws and systems that block new industries, we achieved the result of passing the regulatory sandbox."

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