Skip to content

Hydrogen Council makes Chinese debut at high-profile forum in Beijing

Momentum in China highlights need to mobilise for global hydrogen deployment
Beijing – June 29, 2018 – The Hydrogen Council yesterday joined leaders from industry, academia and government in a first-of-its-kind hydrogen forum in China. Hosted by the prestigious Tsinghua University, the Hydrogen Industry Development Innovation Forum was co-organised alongside the Hydrogen Council by China EV100, Hydrogen China, and the International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association, with support from the United Nations Development Programme. The event saw over 400 high-profile stakeholders exchange updates on the state of play of hydrogen technologies and discussions regarding how to accelerate their large-scale deployment in China and world-wide.

The heavy-weight list of participants featured CEOs, chairmen and other key executives of Hydrogen Council member companies 3M, Air Liquide, Anglo American, Ballard, BMW, Bosch, China Energy, Daimler, ENGIE, Faurecia, Great Wall Motors, Hyundai, Linde, Shell, Toyota, and Weichai. High-profile Chinese speakers included: CPPCC National Committee Vice Chairman Wan Gang, Tsinghua University President Qiu Yong, China EV100 President Chen Qingtai, China EV100 Executive Vice President Ouyang Minggao, Chinese Academy of Engineering Academician Gan Yong, China Energy Investment Corporation President and CEO Ling Wen, Chinese Academy of Sciences Academician Xu Guanhua, China EV100 Secretary General Zhang Yongwei, and Beijing Automotive Group Co., Ltd. General Manager Zhang Xiyong.

The Council’s presence in China highlights the country’s position as one of the key growth markets for clean technologies such as hydrogen. The government has announced plans to put in place 300 hydrogen refueling stations by 2025 and 1,000 by 2030. This hydrogen infrastructure will be able to support about 50,000 fuel cell electric cars by 2025, expanding to one million by 2030. In addition, leading Chinese cities and regions including Wuhan, Rugao, Shanghai, and Guandong have put in place their own ambitious roll-out plans.

Speaking on behalf of the Council, Benoît Potier, Co-Chair of the Hydrogen Council, and Chairman and CEO of Air Liquide noted, “This meeting was an excellent opportunity for several nations to share the progress of hydrogen’s contribution to the energy transition. China’s ambition and speed in clean energy investment is compelling: the hydrogen energy revolution is underway and China is one of the driving forces. We must go further and keep up the momentum to create a global market.” Dr. Woong-chul Yang, Co-Chair of the Hydrogen Council and Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Company added, “The Hydrogen Council’s Forum in China was a well-positioned event given hydrogen’s success in the Chinese market. With our Chinese colleagues, we will continue the work to further establish the industry’s ecosystem worldwide.”

The Beijing forum is part of the Council’s global roadshow aimed at engaging a broad range of international stakeholders enabling hydrogen deployment. Following previous stops in Korea, Northern Europe, Washington, DC and now China, the group’s next big event – the 3rd annual meeting of its CEOs and Chairmen – will take place during the Global Climate Action Summit in California in September 2018.


[Download Press Release]

Hydrogen Industry Development Innovation Forum, Beijing

Related News

en_CAEnglish