H2Tech - Q2 2021 - 14

REGIONAL REPORT: ASIA-PACIFIC
Group's natural gas pipelines across the
East Coast Gas Grid.
BOC Ltd., together with partners ITM
Power, Queensland University of Technology and Hyundai Motor Co. Australia,
are installing a 220-kW electrolyzer and a
100-kW solar array to produce renewable
H2 through electrolysis at BOC's Bulwer
Island, Queensland site. The electrolyzer
will have capacity to produce up to 2,400
kg/month of renewable H2 to power
FCEVs and supply BOC's industrial customers. Since the closure of the BP refinery at Bulwer Island, BOC has transported
H2 from its Altona facility in Melbourne,
Victoria to Bulwer Island in high-pressure
tube trailers, resulting in 90,000 kg of CO2
emissions. BOC sees the opportunity to
demonstrate ultra-high-pressure refueling
of H2 FCEVs, powered by renewable H2
produced at Bulwer Island.
Eco Energy World (EEW) plans to
produce green H2 using power from a
planned, 300-MW solar farm in Raglan
near the Port of Gladstone, Queensland.
The plant will produce 33,000 tpy of green
H2 and represent one of the world's largest
green H2 and solar photovoltaic developments. Construction of the $500-MM
project is expected to start in Q3 2022.
The New South Wales government
has offered A$15 MM in grants for regional community energy, including New
South Wales' first H2 energy storage system at Manilla.
A number of additional H2 and renewable energy projects are ongoing in Australia, with many in the feasibility, proposal and planning stages.
China. China is the world's largest H2
producer, with more than 20 metric
MMtpy of gray H2 output, or approximately one-third of the world's total. This
puts China's H2 supply at about three
times that of the entire H2 supply of Europe (7 metric MMtpy).4
China's government is sponsoring lowcarbon H2 research and development,
and the Beijing city government has announced plans to have more than 1,000
fuel cell buses in operation for the 2022
Winter Olympics. Two H2 refueling stations have been opened in Shanghai since
2019, and the government has declared
a target of 1,000 stations by 2030, along
with 1 MM FCEVs in use on China's roads.
Furthermore, Sinopec is studying the
development of green H2 technology in
14

Q2 2021 | H2-Tech.com

China, as the nation seeks to reach net
zero carbon emissions by 2060.
South Korea. The country unveiled its H2
roadmap in 2019, with a vision to sharply
increase the production of H2 -powered
vehicles and electricity generation by H2 .
In 2020, the Korean National Assembly
passed the Hydrogen Economy Promotion and Hydrogen Safety Management
Law, laying the legal foundations for the
government's H2 commitment and implementing safety standards for H2 facilities.
Meanwhile, Korea Gas Corp. plans
to boost H2 production by building 25
production bases nationwide, along with
constructing new supply chains and distribution channels. It also plans to invest
in liquefied H2 .
Malaysia. National energy giant Petronas

announced a partnership with Japanese
LNG importer JERA in February 2021 to
collaborate on a wide range of low-carbon
energy initiatives covering H2 , ammonia
and LNG. Petronas established an H2
business unit in November 2020 and is already producing blue H2 at its refineries.
The company is also foraying into
green H2 , as part of its effort to achieve
carbon net neutrality by 2050. In late
2020, Petronas announced that it would
partner with SEDC Energy, a subsidiary
of state-owned utility Sarawak Economic
Development Corp., for a large-scale, hydropower-driven H2 production facility.
FCEVs and refueling networks. Worldwide, 584 H2 refueling stations were deployed as of the end of 2020, with half of
these located in Asia-Pacific and one-third
located in Europe. Within the Asia-Pacific
region, Japan leads in H2 refueling station
installations with around 150, although
China has already deployed more than
100 stations in a short period of time.
At present, Japan's H2 -powered vehicle fleet numbers fewer than 4,000;
many of these vehicles are owned by the
government. Japan aims to have 200,000
H2 FCEVs and 320 H2 refueling stations
in use by 2025. To this end, Japanese
automaker Toyota introduced the Mirai-meaning " future " in Japanese-in
2014 as the world's first commercially
produced, H2-fueled vehicle. Recent improvements to functionality, such as the
30% increase in Mirai driving distance
offered on Toyota's newest model, are an-

ticipated to enhance the attractiveness of
H2-fueled transportation.
Meanwhile, South Korea already
hosts enough refueling stations to enable a
cross-country drive via FCEV. The country's 2020 economic strategy includes the
provision of 200,000 H2 vehicles and 450
FCEV charging facilities by 2025. Korea's
Hyundai Motor Co. began production
of an H2-electric hybrid car in 2013 and
launched the Nexo FCEV in 2018.
It is predicted that, by 2035, H2 stations will be commonplace throughout
most of China, Japan and South Korea-
in addition to Western Europe and the
U.S. Also, Thailand's government is encouraging electric transport, which opens
up a potential market for H2 fuel cells.
Takeaway. The Asia-Pacific region is
expected to dominate the global H2 market between 2020 and 2025, adopting
green technologies to meet government
targets for reducing GHG emissions.
With a mix of H2 supplier and consumer
countries and a quickly expanding renewable energy base, Asia-Pacific will
play a leading role in global market dynamics for low-carbon H2.
Japan and Australia are the leaders in
H2 projects and synergies, although China is working at a rapid pace to expand
its H2 infrastructure. H2 use in South
Korea, Malaysia and other countries will
increase alongside the growth of regional
and global supply networks and technology installations to expand the industrial
and commercial use of H2. These ongoing efforts will make Asia-Pacific a region
to watch for H2 development through
2030 and beyond.
LITERATURE CITED
Purtill, J., " What is green hydrogen, how is it made
and will it be the fuel of the future? " ABC Science
News, January 22, 2021, Online: https://www.
abc.net.au/news/science/2021-01-23/greenhydrogen-renewable-energy-climate-emissionsexplainer/13081872
2
Schneider, R. V., D. Kurosaki and M. Oki, " Advances
in chemical carriers for hydrogen, " H2Tech, Q1
2021.
3
ACIL Allen Consulting for Australian Renewable
Energy Agency, " Opportunities for Australia
from hydrogen exports, " Melbourne, Australia,
August 2018, Online: https://arena.gov.au/
assets/2018/08/opportunities-for-australia-fromhydrogen-exports.pdf
4
Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Association, " China ponders
subsidies, cheaper technology for its hydrogen
roadmap, " S&P Global Platts, May 13, 2020,
Online: https://apac-hydrogen.org/china-ponderssubsidies-cheaper-technology-for-its-hydrogenroadmap
1

http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2021-01-23/greenhydrogen-renewable-energy-climate-emissionsexplainer/13081872 http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2021-01-23/greenhydrogen-renewable-energy-climate-emissionsexplainer/13081872 http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2021-01-23/greenhydrogen-renewable-energy-climate-emissionsexplainer/13081872 https://arena.gov.au/assets/2018/08/opportunities-for-australia-fromhydrogen-exports.pdf https://arena.gov.au/assets/2018/08/opportunities-for-australia-fromhydrogen-exports.pdf https://arena.gov.au/assets/2018/08/opportunities-for-australia-fromhydrogen-exports.pdf https://www.apac-hydrogen.org/china-ponders-subsidies-cheaper-technology-for-its-hydrogenroadmap https://www.apac-hydrogen.org/china-ponders-subsidies-cheaper-technology-for-its-hydrogenroadmap https://www.apac-hydrogen.org/china-ponders-subsidies-cheaper-technology-for-its-hydrogenroadmap http://www.H2-Tech.com

H2Tech - Q2 2021

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