Successful Development of Eco-Friendly Hydrogen Electric Train... Carbon Neutrality Expected with Commercialization

Eco-friendly hydrogen electric train test vehicle / Photo by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

[Asia Economy Reporter Noh Kyung-jo] The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Korea Railroad Research Institute announced on the 27th that they have succeeded in developing a prototype eco-friendly hydrogen electric train test vehicle through national research and development (R&D).

The government expects that once the hydrogen electric train test vehicle undergoes demonstration R&D and is commercialized, it will gradually replace aging diesel trains, contributing to carbon neutrality by improving energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The related R&D has been led by the Korea Railroad Research Institute since 2018. Woojin Industrial Systems manufactured the vehicle, and Korea Railroad Corporation developed the operational technology, with seven organizations participating in total. Over the past five years, 25.7 billion KRW (22 billion KRW from the government) has been invested.

The test vehicle is equipped with a hybrid power system (1.2 MW) based on hydrogen fuel cells and secondary batteries. It was produced applying a smart energy management system for optimizing energy consumption.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport explained that facilities necessary for hydrogen refueling were established through a regulatory exemption system, and plans and technical standards (draft) for dedicated hydrogen refueling stations for railway vehicles were also prepared. It was confirmed that the vehicle meets the research goals of a maximum operating speed of over 110 km/h and a driving range of over 600 km on a single charge.

The hydrogen electric train is a zero-carbon railway vehicle that emits no pollutants other than water. Since it uses an independent power source method, it does not require electrical infrastructure such as overhead lines or substations, which reduces the cost of building and maintaining power infrastructure and prevents safety accidents such as electric shocks.

The global market is in its early stages, with no commercial cases outside France, and most are known to be in the technology development phase. Jeong Chae-kyo, Director of Railway Safety Policy at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "With the successful development of hydrogen electric train technology, the hydrogen mobility sector has taken its first step into the railway field to realize carbon neutrality. We will promote demonstration projects and the establishment of technical standards for the commercialization of hydrogen trains in the future, and continue to invest in technology development to secure a leading position in the global hydrogen train market."

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