"The Future is Hydrogen"… Hyundai Motor, SK, POSCO, Hanwha Strive Hard

Due to insufficient policy support, domestic mid-sized companies and SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) are gradually withdrawing from the hydrogen industry, while major conglomerates continue their steady investments. Although business operations are currently difficult, a consensus is forming that they cannot give up when considering hydrogen's infinite future value.

Hyundai Motor Group is the most active. Hyundai Motor began construction of a new hydrogen fuel cell factory in Ulsan last year. Targeting completion next year, this plant will integrate the 'chemical process' for processing raw materials and the 'assembly process' for assembling finished parts, achieving an annual fuel cell production capacity of 30,000 units. Separately, Hyundai Motor Group's total investment of 9 trillion won in the 'Saemangeum AI (Artificial Intelligence) Valley' includes the construction of water electrolysis plants and the creation of an AI hydrogen city.

Hyundai Motor Group's hydrogen business is not limited to Korea. It sells the hydrogen passenger car 'Nexo' in major domestic and international markets, while rapidly expanding the scope for hydrogen buses and trucks. Recently, Hyundai Motor Group agreed to cooperate with the African Development Bank (AfDB) to promote clean energy transitions based on renewable energy such as green hydrogen in Africa.

SK Group is also continuing its steady investments. Among the five major groups that announced a mid-to-long-term investment plan for the hydrogen sector in 2021, SK declared the largest scale (18.5 trillion won). Specifically, SK Inno E&S constructed the world's largest liquefied hydrogen plant (capable of annual production of 30,000 tons) on a 15,000-pyeong site within the SK Incheon Petrochemical Plant. Recently, it also signed an agreement with Deokyang Enerzen, a specialized company for hydrogen production and supply, to cooperate in gas hydrogen supply and hydrogen refueling station operations.

POSCO Group's hydrogen-based direct reduction ironmaking business is also noteworthy. Hydrogen-based direct reduction ironmaking is a technology that uses hydrogen instead of coal as the existing reducing agent. Recently, POSCO gained attention by signing a cooperation agreement with Australian mining company BHP for hydrogen-based direct reduction ironmaking. Through this cooperation, POSCO will be able to verify the performance of its 'HyREX' technology using BHP's iron ore in various raw material environments and strengthen the foundation for commercializing the technology based on these results. HyREX is a technology that produces molten iron using hydrogen as a reducing agent instead of coal.

Hanwha Group is also actively promoting its hydrogen business through several subsidiaries. Last year, Hanwha Aerospace obtained certification for the world's highest-level '200-kilowatt-class shipboard hydrogen fuel cell,' officially entering the eco-friendly carbon-free ship market. Hanwha Impact and Hanwha Power successfully demonstrated a hydrogen-only combustion test by operating an 80-megawatt medium-to-large gas turbine entirely on hydrogen fuel in August 2023.